Ecclesiastical site in Spike Island — Report the wrong picture

What is recorded here

Spike Island in County Cork may have been Inispicht, an early Christian place now hidden beneath grass and memory. A 1625 map still suggests a ruined church stood there, yet no wall or foundation remains for a stranger to touch. The sea kept the site quiet while human hands forgot it, turning prayer into speculation and stone into absence.

According to Hurley (1980, 63), Spike island is 'identifiable with the early ecclesiastical site of Inispicht' (see also Coleman 1893, 1-8; Lynch 1912,162-4; J.C.Q. 1936, 47-8; Bolster 1972, XLI), of which there are no visible surface traces; map of 1625 appears to show ruined church on island (Hayes-McCoy 1964, plate 21) but none shown on Vallancey's map (MacCarthy ibid), nor does the latter show any remains of castle/tower house shown on 1587 map (Hayes-McCoy ibid., 25, plate 15). The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Cork. Volume 2: East and South Cork' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1994). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload/revision: 14 January 2009

The monument record does not grant public access. Check the route and ask the landowner before entering private land.