A newly discovered building inscription

Abstract

The inscription is carved on the upper portion of a rock slab with arciform ornamentation. It is 20 lines long. The inscription is well-preserved, with no defaced, illegible, or reconstructed letters or passages apparent. There are crosses carved into the upper and lower portions of the rock. The full abbreviation of Christ is written on the four corners of the upper cross, flanked by two circles containing stars with at least six points. The lines of the main text of the inscription, with the exception of the last two lines, are separated by horizontal lines. The language, composition style, and paleography are all clearly from the time it was inscribed, which is also evident based on the abundance of abbreviations. The abbreviations do not follow any particular guidelines or rules and vowels as well as consonants are dropped. It is also important to note the complete absence of ornamental ligatured script. The final three lines were carved by another scribe, perhaps at a later date. The content of these final lines is difficult to explain. They perhaps refer to the place of something, or the boundaries of the site. We think that they are in regards to the abbey complex, made up of a church and a vicarage.