This is a bullaun stone, a type of ancient carved or naturally hollowed boulder found at early Christian and pre-Christian sites across Ireland. The hollows, known as bullauns, were almost certainly used for grinding, though their presence at sacred sites has led many scholars to associate them with ritual use as well, possibly for collecting rainwater believed to carry curative properties. This particular example sits quietly beside the ruined church at Mungret, just outside Limerick city, and what survives is modest but intact enough to read clearly.

The stone was recorded by Caimin O'Brien and uploaded to the National Monuments Service database in October 2018. It lies in Mungret graveyard, immediately south of the south wall of the church and close to its south-west angle. The stone itself is irregular in shape, measuring roughly 0.56 metres by 0.83 metres, with a depth of around 0.2 metres. The hollow cut into its edge is noticeably deep, with a top diameter of 0.22 metres and a depth ranging between 0.15 and 0.2 metres. Its position at the margin of the stone, rather than at the centre, gives it a slightly unfinished or worn quality, as though it has been shifted or partially buried over the centuries.

Mungret graveyard is still in use and broadly accessible. The ruined church it surrounds is one of several ecclesiastical remains associated with Mungret, which was once the site of a significant early medieval monastery. The bullaun stone sits low to the ground close to the south-west corner of the church ruin, so it is easy to walk past without noticing. Going in the cooler months, when vegetation has died back, makes it considerably easier to locate. It rewards a slow look rather than a quick one, particularly the hollow itself, whose worn edges suggest long handling.