Graveyard

The National Monuments Service's description

In Easkey village, located on a low bluff overlooking the Easkey River, which lies c. 25m to E. Roughly L-shaped walled graveyard (c. 30m NNW-SSE; c. 20m ENE-WSW) which encloses the W and S sides of a late medieval church (SL011-021----). The entrance gate is in the high, stone-built W wall of the graveyard, opening directly off the main street of the village. A low rectangular stone-built bench abutting the outer face of the graveyard wall at NW may have served as a coffin rest (Moore 2016, 5). Within the graveyard are grave slabs, headstones, table tombs and chest tombs, with the greatest density in the N half of the graveyard. Where inscription can be read, the graves date to the 19th century. Interspersed between the formal graves, are rows of low, uninscribed stone grave markers. A stone, which barely protrudes above the ground surface, adjacent to a 19th-century grave in the N half of the graveyard, appears to be a quernstone or millstone, which was reused as a gravemarker (Pers. comm. Tamlyn McHugh, 2019).
In the SW corner of the graveyard is a small rectangular building (int. dims. 4.1m E–W; 3m N–S) with mortared stone walls (H 0.8-1.05m; Wth 0.4-0.6m), probably dating to early 19th century. It is roofless and the walls are partly concealed by ivy. The W gable is incorporated into the W wall of the graveyard. There is a flat-headed doorway in the E gable and a narrow, broken out window towards the W end of the N wall. There is a small stone font set into the inner face of the E wall to N of the doorway. Abutting the W gable are two pedestals (H 0.5m), set 0.72m apart, which appear to have supported an altar. The interior floor space, now grass-grown, is occupied by two grave slabs.

Attached images:
SL011-021001-_01.JPG Graveyard wall, viewed from SW
SL011-021001-_02.JPG N half of graveyard, viewed from S
SL011-021001-_03.JPG 19th-century box tomb, viewed from W
SL011-021001-_04.JPG Building in SW quadrant of graveyard, viewed from SE

Compiled by: Jane O’Shaughnessy

Date of revised upload: 4 November 2019

References

Moore, S. 2016 Graveyard Survey at Easkey church and Graveyard, Curraghnagap td., Easkey, Co. Sligo. Unpublished survey of Easkey church and graveyard undertaken on behalf of the Easkey community development group (The LEAP Project).