Ecclesiastical enclosure

The National Monuments Service's description

In low-lying pastureland. This roughly circular enclosure (diam. c. 140m) is defined by a double-faced, now much-collapsed, grass-covered drystone wall (H 0.3-1m; Wth 1.5-2.5m). A later field wall has been built on top it, apart from the W to N sector. There is a stone-lined entrance gap (Wth 1.9m) at SE. The interior is divided into 15 or 16 sub-divisions by a series of radial walls which survive as grass-covered mounds (H 0.3m); up to ten house sites (see GA103-139005, GA103-139006- and GA103-139007-) can be traced on the ground (Waddell and Clyne 1995, 149). Just to the E of centre is a church (GA103-139001-). It lies in the SW half of a roughly square enclosure (c. 30m N-S; c. 30m E-W) which is also defined by a collapsed wall. This enclosure delimits an earlier graveyard (GA103-139004-). There is souterrain in the W sector. A series of excavations were carried out in and around the church by Duignan in 1950, 1951 and 1953 (Duignan 1951, 73-5; Waddell and Clyne ibid.). Duignan (ibid., 73) choose Kiltiernan for excavation because he had noted that there was no ‘modern cemetery … no signs of medieval or later building’ and the original lay-out appeared to be ‘unusually well preserved for a mainland monastery’. (Westropp 1919, 178; McCaffrey 1952, 80, 82-3, 198, no. 63; Norman and St Joseph 1969, 13, 102, fig. 57)

Compiled by: Olive Alcock

Date of upload: 8 February 2018

This monument was taken into Guardianship under the National Monuments Acts 1930 to 2014 - National Monument 446.

References

Westropp, T.J. 1919a Notes on several forts in Dunkellin and other parts of southern Co. Galway. Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland 49, 167-86.

Norman, E.R. and St Joseph, J.K. 1969a The early development of Irish society. The evidence of aerial photography. Cambridge University Press.

Duignan, M.V. 1951 Miscellanea: early monastic site, Kiltiernan East townland, Co. Galway; O.S. Sheet 103 (6" scale). Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland 81, 73-5.

Waddell, J. and Clyne, M. 1995 M.V. Duignan's excavations at Kilternan, Co. Galway, 1950-1953. Journal of the Galway Archaeological and Historical Society 47, 149-203.

McCaffrey, P. 1952 A contribution to the archaeology of the barony of Dunkellin, Co. Galway. Unpublished MA thesis, National University of Ireland, Galway.