Cantwell Fada facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Cantwell Fada
Long Man of Kilfane
Artist	Unknown
Year	c. 1330
Type	limestone
Dimensions	243 cm (95.5 in)
Location	Kilfane Church, Ireland
Coordinates	52°33′15″N 7°07′06″W / 52.554197°N 7.118217°W / 52.554197; -7.118217

The knight holds a shield with the Cantwell family's coat of arms.

The Cantwell Fada (which means "the long Cantwell" in Irish) is a special stone statue of a knight. It is found in the old ruins of the 14th-century Kilfane Church in Kilfane, near Thomastown in County Kilkenny, Ireland. This amazing statue is also known as the Long Man. It gives us a peek into what knights looked like a very long time ago.

Discovering the Cantwell Fada

This impressive statue is called an effigy. An effigy is a carved figure, often of a person, used as a monument. The Cantwell Fada is made from a single large piece of limestone. It stands tall, showing a knight in his armor.

What the Knight Wears

The knight on the statue wears special clothing and armor from his time.

• He has a metal skull-cap on his head.
• This cap is covered by a coif, which is like a hood made of fabric or chainmail.
• He also wears a chainmail hauberk. This is a long shirt made of metal rings that protects his body down to his knees.
• Over his chainmail, he has a cloth surcoat. This was a loose outer garment worn over armor.
• A sword belt is visible around his waist.
• You can see large spurs on his feet. Spurs were used to make horses go faster, showing that he fought battles while riding a horse.

The Knight's Pose

The knight's legs are crossed, with his right leg over his left. For a long time, people thought this pose meant the knight had been part of the Crusades. The Crusades were a series of religious wars in the Middle Ages. However, experts now believe that crossed legs were just a popular style of carving at that time.

In his left hand, the knight holds a large shield. This shield shows the coat of arms of the Cantwell family. A coat of arms is a special design used to identify a family or a person.

Who Was This Knight?

Many people believe this statue represents Thomas de Cantwell. He was a knight who lived a long time ago and died in 1319. Thomas de Cantwell was a Cambro-Norman adventurer. This means he was from a group of people who came to Ireland from Wales and Normandy. He became the Lord of Kilfane.

The stone statue was probably once a flat slab that covered a tomb, called a sarcophagus slab. Later, it was set upright against an inner wall of the church.

A Glimpse into the Past

The Cantwell Fada is a great example of the amazing art created in Ireland during the 1300s. It shows the high quality of sculptures made in the area known as The Pale. This was before a time when Ireland faced many challenges, which led to a decline in art and economy.

A Local Story

There is a fun local story about the Cantwell Fada. A writer named Hubert Butler once shared a tale he heard. He said that children at the nearby Protestant school were sometimes punished by having to kiss the statue!