Sites and Monuments Record · Ireland
Castle - tower house
Callan South, County Kilkenny, Ireland
The record
- Townland
- Callan South
- County
- Kilkenny
- Country
- Ireland
- First-edition OS map
- Castles (in ruins)
- Latest-edition OS map
- Sch.
- Coordinates
- 52.54434, -7.39012
- SMR number
- KK026-010005-
Slide toward Today to fade the historical sheet and see the modern map underneath.
David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries
4 historical maps cover this location, the earliest the 1790 map "Composite: Ireland." (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries).
Historical maps covering this location
- 1790 · Composite: Ireland. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
- 1869 · Ireland. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
- 1891 · Ireland 16 (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
- 1904 · Sheet 13. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
This record in the National Monuments Service's Historic Environment Viewer ↗
The National Monuments Service's description
In the first half of the 19th century, Robertson made several sketches of St Mary’s church (KK026-010012-) in Callan and of the town itself and included in the sketches is an urban tower house (Manning 1998, 68-9). On one version, printed in 1851, the tower house is shown N of church, roughly on the same line as the church tower. The S portion of the rear, E wall, is drawn as a three storey building with a somewhat ruinous parapet, defined by a string-course, with a chimney mid-way along the parapet. It has a hipped-roof in good condition. There are well-cut quoins on the SE angle. At ground-floor level there is an arched opening which appears to be blocked up, as there is a square feature in the centre of the blocking, possibly a plaque associated with the adjoining graveyard. There are two narrow loops at first-floor level and at second floor level an inserted window at the S end (8 over 8 panes, probably timber sash) and a loop N of this.
Fabric of this tower house is possibly incorporated in the three-storey building with attic which currently occupies the site. It presents a four-bay elevation facing Green Street and a three-bay side elevation facing Mill Street (https://www.buildingsofireland.ie/buildings-search/building/12314058/old-charter-house-the-green-street-edmund-ignatius-rice-street-mill-street-callan-south-callan-kilkenny; accessed 7 June 2022). The N end of the roof is hipped and the S end gabled, with a slate-hung gable to the roof height of the attached two-storey building. The other external faces are rendered. There are two large chimney stacks orientated E-W. The building was probably largely remodelled in the mid-18th century when it was established as a charter school.
See attached:
KK026-010005-_01 Sketch by Robertson 1851
KK026-010005-_02 Sketch by Robertson in Manning 1998, 69
KK026-010005-_03 Sketch by Robertson in Manning 1998, 69
Compiled by: Jean Farrelly
Date of upload: 7 June 2022
References
Manning, C. 1998 The Civil Survey of Inistioge and Callan, Co. Kilkenny. Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries 128, 48-73.
Carrigan, Rev. W. 1905 (Reprint 1981) The history and antiquities of the diocese of Ossory, 4 vols. Kilkenny. Roberts Books and Wellbrook Press.
Nearby in the register
- Cross - Market crossunder 1 mi
- Graveslabunder 1 mi
- Tomb - chest tombunder 1 mi
- Graveslabunder 1 mi
Other entries of the same register within about three miles of this one, by straight line.