Mass Garden

Situated on a little col with higher ground to the NW, E and S, lower ground to the W and a small S-N stream valley just to the E. The mass-rock was in a small mass-garden, which was a small rectangular field (dims c. 65m NE-SW; c. 35m NW-SE) described as a Mass Garden o the 1834 ed. of the OS 6-inch map but it is now occupied by houses. The mass-rock was placed between the masonry gate-piers into the mass-garden c. AD 1990. It is a rectangular stone (dims 1-1.05m x 0.55-0.6m; H 0.6m) set on a cement base with three steps leading down to the road. (Ó Gallachair 1957, 113) Compiled by: Michael Moore Date of upload: 20 June, 2016

Linked to clandestine Catholic worship during the period of religious persecution in Ireland, the mass-rock was used for secret Masses, with the surrounding mass-garden serving as a gathering place for the local community. Such sites were often associated with local saints or traditions of resistance and faith.