Church

The National Monuments Service's description

At W foot of an esker ridge running roughly N-S, in undulating farmland. Known locally as the 'Old church of Laught' (Claffey 1983, 156-7), it comprises a poorly preserved long rectangular building (N-S; L 22.3m, Wth 6m), probably a pre-emancipation RC chapel. The doorway, of which only the lower jambs survive, is roughly centrally placed in E wall, and is approached by a series of steps descending from the ridge summit. There are robbed window opes in N and S gables, and a small stone-built altar at S gable is set on a raised area defined by four steps. Immediately to N of this, traces of an internal subdivision are discernible underfoot; the floor itself appears to consist of grassed-over flagstones. The E and W walls appear to have been crudely repaired and traces of plaster are visible internally at S end. Directly inside the doorway is a broken holy water stoup which has been repaired and mounted on a stone plinth. The church is centrally placed within a small subrectangular enclosure (N-S 37m, E-W 20m) defined on S, W and N sides by a low bank which fades into the slope at E. There are traces of an external fosse along W side. A spring well lies close by to SW. Claffey (ibid., 94) claims that this is the 'probable location of a branch of the Franciscan community at kiltullagh' (see GA018-027001-).

The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Galway Vol. II - North Galway'. Compiled by Olive Alcock, Kathy de hÓra and Paul Gosling (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1999).

Date of upload: 05 August 2010