What is recorded here

Indicated is a vanished formal garden beside Rathcoffey House in County Kildare, recorded in 1838 as two rectangular gardens with internal pathways. Ploughing has erased most surface traces, but a long dry pond remains nearby, locally called the decoy. That pond has yielded skulls and antlers of giant Irish deer, hinting that the garden once shaped a wider landscape of water, distance and memory.

Recorded on the 1st ed. of the OS 6-inch map (1838) as two, formally laid out, rectangular gardens with internal pathways and divisions, the larger (est. dims. L c. 90m E-W; Wth c. 80m N-S) lying immediately NE of Rathcoffey House (KD010-018005-) is mirrored by a slightly smaller garden (est. dims. L c. 70m E-W; Wth c. 60m N-S) immediately to the SW of the house. Visible on a 1970's aerial photograph (CUCAP BDU036) as low earthworks, but extensive ploughing has removed obvious visible surface traces. An elongated pond or lake (est. dims. L c. 180m; Wth c. 30m), possibly marking the end of a vista, is also recorded on the OS 1st ed., on lower ground c. 450m S of the house. Now dry, it is known locally as the 'decoy', and in the 1890's and 1950's, produced several skulls and antlers of giant Irish deer. (JKAS 1945, 420-24) Compiled by: Gearóid Conroy Date of upload: 10 June 2011

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