Building

The National Monuments Service's description

On a rise with land sloping to the N. Within a roughly rectangular-shaped graveyard (KK031-030002-) there is a round tower (KK031-030001-) near the W boundary wall and a much modified 12th/13th-century church (KK031-030003-) which forms part of the N boundary of the present graveyard. According to Carrigan (1905, vol. 4, 6) St Brendan of Birr was the patron of the church and the holy well (Kk031-029---) c. 220m to the NW of the church is dedicated to him. Following a description of the round tower, the OS Letters (1839) describe, ‘some vestiges of the foundation of a building running from west to east near it on the north’. It then mentions the ‘old castle’ (KK031-030004-) which is built on the modified church or chancel of the church and, ‘Another dwelling place joined this castle on the west’ (O’Flanagan (ed.) 1930, vol. 2, 127-9 (39-40)). The remains of a building with a steeply pitched gable are visible in the external W face of the W wall of the modified church/tower house (KK031-030004-). The building extends westward (int. dims. 6.08m N-S; 6.05m E-W), however, the W wall may be inserted, only the foundations remains (H 0.25m; T 0.9m), or it may be an internally cross wall. The foundations of another wall (L 4.7m; H 0.25m) extend westward from the S end of the cross wall. The N wall only partially survives, the graveyard boundary wall has been built along this wall. The side walls, running from the church/tower house, post-date the church, the masonry of which survives up to first-floor level. On the N side the earlier quoins have been removed to facilitate the bonding on the later wall and on the S side the later wall appears to have been largely built up against the existing wall. Only a short length of the side walls appears to be original, with the walling which is now visible (H 1.3m; S wall T 0.9m) being fairly crudely rebuilt on the line of the side walls. The steeply pitched gable projects westward from the W wall of the tower house and is possibly the original gable of the church. The roof timbers of the later building rested on the offset created by the projection and the roof was protected by coping stones built into, and contemporary with, the late 15th/16th-century masonry of the tower house. The gabled wall may incorporate some features associated with its use as a church, particularly the pointed arch recess at first-floor level which may have been contained a rood. There are two small windows at this level, one in the rear wall of the recess and the other S of the recess, both with small embrasures to the W. A pointed doorway centrally placed at ground level in this gable allows access between this building and the church/tower house and there is a flat-headed window on either side of this doorway, all three openings have eastern embrasures.

Compiled by: Jean Farrelly

Date of upload: 6 March 2018

References

Carrigan, Rev. W. 1905 (Reprint 1981) The history and antiquities of the diocese of Ossory, 4 vols. Kilkenny. Roberts Books and Wellbrook Press.

O'Flanagan, Rev. M. (Compiler) 1930 Letters containing information relative to the antiquities of the county of Kilkenny collected during the progress of the Ordnance Survey in 1839. Bray.