Irneit's Cross (No. 47)
Irneit's Cross (No. 47)
On one side is a six sided cross within a bordered circle, a form derived
from the Chi-Rho symbol. There is an inscription in Hiberno-Saxon from
the 8th century going around the cross within the bordered circle.
The Chi remains, but some of the rest of the inscription is damaged. It
is also abbreviated, but reads as follows with the omitted words in brackets:
(Ihu) Xp (Ist) I Irneit S(Anctus) P(res)B(iter)I Ep(Isco)p(atu)s Dei Insula
>< Apb (Hat)Que. Meaning in the name of Jesus Christ, Irneit, holy priest,
God's Bishop in the Island and Abbot. Below the circle are two linear, but
formal crosses. At the sides of these crosses are inscriptions reading
downwards as follows: In Ih((s)u Xp(ist)i/nomine; meaning, In the name of
Jesus Christ and Crux xp(ist)i/imagenem,; meaning, The image of the cross
of Christ (I have made in Christ's name an image of the Cross of Christ).
These translations show a connection between the early Manx church with
Britain and Gaul. The slab dates from around the 7th century.
