Church

The National Monuments Service's description

An early ecclesiastical site identified as Senchell Dumaige where St Patrick founded a church at the mound of Uí Oilealla for Ródán, who had come into Ireland with him (Ó Riain 2011, 537) and probably the site of the parish church of Shankill, listed as Schevrill in the ecclesiastical taxation of Elphin diocese in 1306 (Cal. doc. Ire., vol. 5, 223). Situated towards the S edge of a plateau. John O'Donovan c. 1837 records that a fragment of a church survived here (O'Flanagan 1931, vol. 2, 28). Nothing survives of a church now within a wedge-shaped graveyard (RO016-123002-) (dims 63m E-W; 33m N-S at E to 51m N-S at W) defined by masonry walls and containing 18th-20th century headstones and one burial vault. A bullaun stone (dims 0.59m x 0.5m; H 0.3m) with a single basin (diam. 0.2m; D 0.22m) that is broken at one edge is recorded by M. B. Timoney from the graveyard.

Compiled by: Michael Moore

Date of upload: 24 August 2010

References

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

O'Flanagan, Rev. M. (Compiler) 1931 Letters containing information relative to the antiquities of the county of Roscommon collected during the progress of the
Ordnance Survey in 1837. Bray.

Ó Riain, P. 2011 A dictionary of Irish Saints. Dublin. Four Courts Press.