I always understood the IHS to be the name "Jesus." There is a tradition that it was part of the inscription the Romans placed above the cross of Jesus when he was crucified: Jesus of Nazareth--King of the Jews. It is often lettered on the tombstones of Christians as a sign of their belief in Christ and His resurrection. Cheers, Judy. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jackie Serna" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Tuesday, May 08, 2001 5:17 PM Subject: Re: [IRL~CEMS] Re: Letters I H S - Meaning Please? How about "Irish Historical Society", not sure really, just a guess. Jackie [email protected] wrote: > I knew R I P from Latin in schooldays sixty years ago but can someone help > please with the I H S centered at the top of a gravestone I have > photographed? Thanks from Eleanor in Sydney NSW > > ==== IRELAND-CEMETERIES Mailing List ==== > All mail to the list must be addressed to; [email protected] > if you don't follow the above example, it will end up in the trash can. ==== IRELAND-CEMETERIES Mailing List ==== Always send your replies back through the list. Other people may be looking for the same information and your answer will be stored in the archives for future researchers.

Yes IHS is a monogram for "Jesus". "INRI" which you sometimes see on crucifixes are the Latin initials for "Jesus of Nazereth King (Rex) of the Jews". A wonderful source for all RC information is the Catholic Encyclopedia which is free on line at http://www.catholicconnections.org/Catholic_Encyclopedia/Encyclopedia.htm Richard Callanan London, England.