What is recorded here

Eskaheen Graveyard stands on high Donegal ground, still receiving the dead beside the broken chest of an early church that served the area until the seventeenth century. The surviving west gable and south wall face Lough Foyle, suggesting worshipers chose a place where prayer could be seen across the water. People may have come there to mark loss, celebrate faith or simply watch the sky change above the bay.

Traditionally claimed as the site of an early ecclesiastical foundation (Gwynn and Hadcock 1970, 384), the site now consists of a graveyard (DG039-006001-) still in use and slight remains of a church (DG039-007-). This was in use until the end of the seventeenth century (Leslie 1937, 269). Part of a W gable, 4.4m internal length, and a small section of the S wall, with a segment-headed opening of a possible door or window, survive. The site is located on high good ground with good views over Lough Foyle. The above description was derived from the 'Archaeological Survey of County Donegal. A description of the field antiquities of the County from the Mesolithic Period to the 17th century.' Compiled by: Brian Lacey with Eamon Cody, Claire Cotter, Judy Cuppage, Noel Dunne, Vincent Hurley, Celie O'Rahilly, Paul Walsh and Seán Ó Nualláin (Lifford: Donegal County Council, 1983). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated. Date of upload: 22 September 2008

Early medieval ecclesiastical site; likely 7th–10th century. Significance lies in its long continuity of use and potential links to early Christian settlement in the region.

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