What is recorded here

Inishcaltra is a holy island in County Clare where an early monastic graveyard still holds the dead. Beneath the familiar Saint’s Graveyard, a smaller palisaded enclosure and wooden shrine waited for discovery. They were rebuilt repeatedly, suggesting that people kept returning to shape, protect and remember the same sacred ground.

Situated at the N wall of the Saint’s Graveyard (CL029-009030-) on Inis Cealtra. A rectangular palisaded enclosure (c. 18m E-W) was found here during excavations on the island by de Paor in the 1970s (de Paor 2013, 39, 57). Only the smaller N sector was excavated as the S portion extends beneath the Saint’s graveyard and this was not excavated. A wooden shrine (CL029-009134-) was excavated in the E sector. Both it and the enclosure appeared to have been rebuilt several times and according to de Paor (ibid.) probably date from a very early stage in the monastic history of the island. Sixteen poorly preserved burials were found within the enclosure, twelve of which were aligned with the enclosure and wooden shrine. Compiled by: Mary Tunney Date of upload: 9 November 2015

A rectangular palisaded enclosure, likely medieval in date, associated with a saint's graveyard; significance relates to early Christian settlement and monastic activity on Inishcaltra (Inis Cealtra).

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