Gwerica ferch Owain MATHRAFAL #77449

____ - 1290
DEATH 1290

Historical Notes

Gweirca ferch Owain was a medieval Welsh noblewoman, granddaughter of Madog ap Gruffydd Maelor and daughter of Owain ap Gruffydd ap Madog.

Gweirca died in 1290 and is buried at Valle Crucis Abbey, near Llangollen, which was founded by her grandfather.

Her sepulchral grave slab has been preserved at the Abbey and represents the earliest-dated grave slab in north Wales. The stone is badly weathered and exists only in fragments. However, the following details can be identified: "an inscription, placed within a border, surrounding a narrow band of decoration. This consists of the upper part of two animals with their heads back to back and their tails interlacing elaborately with two circles. The lower part of the panel has interlacing stems."

The inscription in Latin reads:

HIC IACET GWEIRCA FILIA OWENI ... PPICIETVR... AME...E ADO MCC LXXXX

Translated as:

Here lies Gweirca, daughter of Owain... (may God) have mercy... on her soul... AD 1290

Peter Lord states that Gweirca's grave slab is "the earliest-dated Welsh memorial of any kind".

Parents

Father : Owain MATHRAFAL #77440

Lineage 

                                                       _Madog ap Gruffyd Maelor MATHRAFAL _+
                                                      |                                    
                       _Gruffudd Maelor II MATHRAFAL _|
                      | (.... - 1269)                 |
                      |                               |_Esyllt of UNKNOWN _________________
                      |                                                                    
 _Owain MATHRAFAL ____|
|                     |
|                     |                                ____________________________________
|                     |                               |                                    
|                     |_Emma AUDLEY __________________|
|                       (1224 - 1278)                 |
|                                                     |____________________________________
|                                                                                          
|
|--Gwerica ferch Owain MATHRAFAL 
|  (.... - 1290)
|                                                      ____________________________________
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|_____________________|
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                      |                                ____________________________________
                      |                               |                                    
                      |_______________________________|
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Source References