House - medieval

The National Monuments Service's description

The medieval manse house of the Prebendary of Tascoffin of the chapter of St Canice's cathedral (KK019-026029-) at Nos 21-22 Vicar Street, in the SE of Irishtown. Located between the medieval house of the cathedral vicar, the N gable (KK019-026269-) of which remains extant to its SE, and the former manse house of the chancellor of the cathedral at 17-19 Vicar Street (KK019-026121-) to its NW, No 22 Vicar Street was demolished in 2014 to make way for the Kilkenny Central Access Scheme road scheme. No medieval fabric was identified in the standing buildings, apart from the N gable of the adjoining vicar's house (KK019-026269-) (Goodbody 2013, unpublished). John Rocque's 1758 map of Kilkenny depicts a long E-W building extending between the gable of the vicar's house (KK019-026269-) and Mill Lane to the S of the Chancellor's manse (KK019-026121-). Ledwich in 1781 noted that ‘The manse house of the prebendary of Tascoffin meared on the E. with the chancellor’s orchard, on the W. with King-Street, on the N. with the chancellor’s orchard, and on the S. with the vicar’s house’ (Ledwich 1781, 487). John Hogan described the manse house of the prebendary of Tascoffin as ‘formerly very extensive’ and interprets Rocque’s 1758 map as giving ‘the ground plan of the buildings as extending eastwards halfway to the River Nore’ (Hogan 1884, 353). Medieval fabric may be extant within No. 22 Vicar Street and a battered wall recorded (97E0481) by Patrick Neary in archaeological monitoring on the N side of No. 22 Vicar Street, on the S side of Mill Lane, probable represents a part of the manse house (Neary 1998).

Compiled by: Cóilín Ó Drisceoil

Date of upload: 16 November 2020

References

Hogan, J. 1884 Kilkenny: the ancient city of Ossory, the seat of its kings, the see of its bishops and the site of its cathedral. Kilkenny. Self published.

Ledwich, E. 1781 The history and antiquities of Irishtown and Kilkenny. In C. Vallancey (ed.), Collectanea de rebus hibernicis 2, no. 9, 349-562. Dublin.

Neary, P. 1998 Kilkenny Main Drainage: urban medieval (97E0481). In I. Bennett (ed.), Excavations 1997: summary accounts of the archaeological excavations in Ireland, no. 291, 99. Bray. Wordwell.

Goodbody, R. 2013 Recording of buildings along Wolfe Tone Street and Vicar Street, Kilkenny for the Central Access Scheme, Rob Goodbody, Historic Buildings Consultant for Kilkenny County Council. unpublished report.