| Corpus Refs: | Huebner/1876:111 Macalister/1945:429 Nash-Williams/1950:307 RCAHMW/1925:184(i) |
| Site: | CLYDI |
| Discovery: | first mentioned, 1860 Westwood, J.O. |
| History: | Westwood/1860, 223: `During the last meeting of this Association, held at Cardigan, in August 1859, I took the opportunity of visiting and inspecting three very interesting early inscribed stones in the parish of Clydai, a few miles south of Newcastle Emlyn, to which my attention had been kindly directed by Mr. Vincent and by Dr. Jones, whose charming residence in the valley of the Cych afforded me a pleasant resting-place during my day's ramble in search of these hitherto undescribed relics of antiquity. Two of these stones are built into the wall of the village church-yard, the first of them being embedded in the wall just outside the Lych-gate at the east entrance to the churchyard'. Rhys/1873, 5: `August 14 -- From Glendovan we went to Clydey, about six miles from Cilgerran. Here there are two old inscribed stones, of which one stands in the wall of the churchyard by the gate'. Westwood/1879, 122: `The SOLINUS STONE, Plate LIX. fig. 3, is built into the churchyard wall, just outside the lych-gate at the east entrance'. RCAHMW/1925, 75: `placed in the parish church for better preservation...A stone which formerly stood built into the wall of the churchyard, immediately beyond the lych gate, having probably been placed there after one of the restorations of the church, or upon a reparation of the churchyard wall. The close of rough ground directly to the north-east of the church is called Parc y Maen in the Tithe Schedule (No. 1577), and there can be no doubt that this was a former and probably original site of the boulder'. Macalister/1945, 409: `Formerly by the lych-gate of the parish churchyard, but now moved within the church...clamped to the inner face of the west wall'. CISP: the stone remains inside the church. |
| Geology: | |
| Dimensions: | 1.68 x 0.41 x 0.23 (converted from Macalister/1945) |
| Setting: | in display |
| Location: | on site Nash-Williams/1950, 186: `Inside church, standing against W. wall of nave.' CISP 1997: the stone remains in this position. |
| Form: | plain RCAHMW/1925, 75: `It is 5 feet in length, of irregular shape and thickness'. Nash-Williams/1950, 186: `Rough pillar-stone...69 1/2" h. x 16 1/2" w. x 13" t. (maxima)'.
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| Condition: | complete , some Macalister/1922a, 29: `The SOLINVS stone at Clydai, I believe to have originally borne an Ogham, now broken away. I judge this from the appearance of the angle which would have been inscribed, for no trace of the scores remain'. Macalister/1945, 410: `The appearance of the edge is strongly suggestive of intentional fracture; this might well have been done for the purpose of destroying an Ogham inscription, which would have fitted exactly into the space available. Note how the broken-away B-surface narrows at about the place where MAQI, which would practically have nothing on the B-surface, would naturally come'. Nash-Williams/1950, 186: `left edge partly fractured away'. |
| Folklore: | none |
| Crosses: | none |
| Decorations: | no other decoration |
| Westwood, J.O. (1859): | SOL/INI | F/IL/IVSVEN{D}ONI Expansion: SOLINI FILIVS VENDONI Westwood/1860 223--224 reading only Westwood/1876 122 reading only |
| Rhys, J. (1873): | SOL/INI | F/IL/IVSVEN{D}ONI Expansion: SOLINI FILIVS VENDONI Rhys/1873 5 reading only |
| Macalister, R.A.S. (1945): | SOL/INI | F/IL/IVSVENDONI Expansion: SOLINI FILIVS VENDONI Macalister/1945 410 reading only |
| Nash-Williams, V.E. (1950): | SOL/INI | F/IL/IVSVEN{D}ONI Expansion: SOLINI FILIVS VENDONI Translation: (The stone) of Solinus (PN), son of Vendonius (PN). Macalister/1945 186 reading only |
| Orientation: | vertical down |
| Position: | ind ; broad ; n/a ; undecorated Nash-Williams/1950, 186: `Latin inscription in two lines reading vertically downwards'. |
| Incision: | cut Nash-Williams/1950, 186: `lightly cut'. |
| Date: | 466 - 533 (Nash-Williams/1950) 400 - 499 (Jackson/1953) 525 - 550 (Thomas/1994) Thomas/1994, 122. |
| Language: | Latin (rcaps) |
| Ling. Notes: | Westwood/1879, 123: `It will also be observed that whilst the word FILIUS appears in the nominative case, the preceding word SOLINI would seem to be in the genitive, unless we adopt the opinion that SOLINI and not SOLINUS was the name of the deceased'. |
| Palaeography: | Westwood/1879, 122--123: `debased Roman capital letters -- SOLINI FILIVS VEN{D}ONI The only peculiarities worthy of note being the circumstance of the lower part of the S being extended below the line, whilst the I's following the letters F and L are also carried below the line, their tops not extended above the transverse strokes of the preceding letters, giving an appearance of irregularity to the lines; the letter D in the second line is reversed, and the terminal I in both lines is erect and not horizontal, as is often the case'. Macalister/1945, 410: `The combinations FI, LI are ligatured, the latter twice: the D is half-uncial'. Nash-Williams/1950, 186: `Roman capitals...with ligatures of FI and LI in the Roman cursive manner. The V's are somewhat rounded'. |
| Legibility: | good Macalister/1945, 410: `The inscription is clear and its reading has never been questioned'. |
| Lines: | 2 |
| Carving errors: | 0 |
| Doubtful: | no |
Westwood/1879, 123: `Mr. Brash (Arch. Camb., 1874, p. 278) mentions that Solinus was one of the companions of Palladius (see Annals of the Four Masters, A.D. 432), but adding that the name is frequent in Irish history and hagiology under the forms of Sillan and Siollan, and that in the patronymic we recognise the Gaedhelic form Fintan or Findan, and the Gaulish form Vindona (Orel. 2019, Carinth.)'.
Nash-Williams/1950, 186: `The name Vendonius occurs again on No. 44'.
Jackson/1953, 512: `this may be Irish'.
Thomas/1994, 95, 122, 242, prefers a Goidelic origin for this name.