Church

The National Monuments Service's description

The parish church of Kilgefin may have been dedicated to a St Guithbhinn according to J. O'Donovan in 1837 (O'Flanagan 1931, vol. 1, 50), but this saint is not known otherwise (Ó Riain 2011). The church was impropriate to the abbey of Cloontuskert (RO037-001001-) at the Suppression (O'Flanagan 1931, vol. 1, 49). It is situated towards the bottom of a W-facing slope. A small rectangular graveyard (RO036-012003-) (int. dims 41.5m E-W; 33.5m N-S) is defined by an earthen bank with an outer stone facing on all sides except the E is W of the walls of a Church of Ireland church, which was only in use from 1824 to c. 1874, in its own graveyard (Ganly 2009).

The older graveyard has two fragment of a pointed door surround with two orders (RO036-012005-) and a grave-slab (RO036-012004-) (dims 2.1m x 0.65-0.83m) which has a low relief carving of a cross with fleur-de-lis terminals and an inscription commemorating Una Dowel with the date 1676 (Siggins 1996b). There are also two simple grave-markers, one (RO036-012006-) (Wth. 0.27m; H 0.6m; T 0.1m) with an incised cross with bar terminals on each face, the other (RO036-012007-) (Wth 0.27m; H 0.7m; T 0.2m) with an inscribed cross which has expanded terminals (Corlett 1998). St James' well (RO012002-), the location of which was known in the 19th century (O'Flanagan 1931, vol. 1, 50) is not identified.

Compiled by: Michael Moore

Date of revised upload: 28 September 2015

References

Corlett, C. 1998 Three new cross-slabs and a Romanesque lintel from county Roscommon. Journal of the Roscommon Historical and Archaeological Society 7, 137-8.

Ganly, J. 2009 Kilgefin Church of Ireland. Journal of the Roscommon Historical and Archaeological Society 11, 80-82.

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.

Siggins, A. 1996b Slab from Kilgriffen. Journal of the County Roscommon Historical and Archaeological Society, vol. 6, 122.