Church

The National Monuments Service's description

Situated on a slight E-facing slope. The parish church of Ardsallgh, also known as Cannistown (Cogan 1862-70, 1, 114-5), is within a rectangular graveyard (dims c. 50m N-S; c. 40m E-W) defined by masonry walls and has headstones dating from 1726. A church at Ardsalach is listed in the ecclesiastical taxation (1302-06) of Pope Nicholas IV (Cal. doc. Ire. 5, 256). Ussher (1622) describes the church at Ardsallage as ruinous but the chancel was repaired (Erlington 1847-64, 1, lxxxvi). According to Dopping (1682-5) the church and chancel of St Bridget were in ruins since 1641 and it was not enclosed (Ellison 1972, 11). It is a National Monument known as Cannistown church (Harbison 1970, 180).
This is a divided nave (int. dims 12.5m E-W; 5.45m N-S) and chancel (int. dims 7.38m E-W; 4.52m N-S) structure that survives almost complete, except for much of the N walls (ext. dims 22.85m E-W; 7.25m N-S). The rounded chancel arch (Wth 2.17m) has decorated pilasters of a late 12th or early 13th century date (O’Neill 2002, 8-9), and there are two decorated corbels over the arch on the nave side to support a rood loft. Other architectural features in the nave may have been inserted. The base of a doorway (Wth 1.1m) is towards the W end of the S nave wall with a cusped ogee-headed window to the W. The W gable has a similar window with the stumps of a double belfry overhead. A window towards the E end of the S wall is destroyed, and the features of the N wall are unknown as it is reduced to the foundations.
The chancel may have had a doorway at the W end of the S wall and twin lancets in the E wall (Crawford 1921, 126), but the surviving remains cannot confirm this. There is a single lancet and an aumbry at ground level on the N wall and a surviving lancet and piscina at the E end of the S wall. The piscina (Wth 0.35m; H 0.47m; D 0.5m) is pointed with chamfered edges, and much of the dressed stone in the chancel is old red sandstone. The E window is destroyed but it was in a large rectangular embrasure and may have had a number of ogee-headed lights of 15th century date.
The bottom part of the basin of a sandstone font (dims 0.55m x 0.48m; H 0.26m) with the barely visible outline of the basin (diam. 0.4m) and a central drain-hole (diam. 4cm) is in the chancel. A small bullaun stone (dims 0.56m x 0.38m; H 0.27m) with a damaged basin (diam. 0.21m; D 0.1m) is in the nave.

The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Meath' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1987). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research.

This is a National Monument in state ownership, No. 239.

Compiled by: Michael Moore

Date of revision: 8 January 2015

References

Erlington, C. R. (ed.) 1847-64 The whole works of the most Reverend James Ussher. 17 vols. Hodges and Smith, Dublin

O'Neill, M. 2002 The medieval parish churches in County Meath. Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland, 132, 1-56.

Crawford, H. S. 1921 Cannistown church, County Meath. Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland, 51, 125-32.

Cal. doc. Ire. - Calendar of documents relating to Ireland 1171-1307, ed. H.S. Sweetman (5 vols., London, 1875-86).

Harbison, P. 1970 Guide to the national monuments in the Republic of Ireland. Dublin. Gill and Macmillan.

Ellison, Rev. C. C. 1971-5 Bishop Dopping's Visitation Book 1682-5, Ríocht na Mídhe, 5, 1, 28-39; 5, 2, 3-13; 5, 3, 3-11; 5, 4, 98-103; 6, 1, 3-13.

Cogan, Rev. A. 1862-70 Ecclesiastical history of the diocese of Meath: ancient and modern. (3 vols) Dublin: John Fowler, Joseph Dollard