Catholic Church of the Star of the Sea — Duncannon

A presbytery erected under the aegis of Reverend Thomas Doyle PP (1817-1903) representing an important component of the late nineteenth-century built heritage of south County Wexford with the architectural value of the composition confirmed by such attributes as the compact plan form centred on a restrained doorcase, albeit one largely concealed behind a later porch; the construction in a ruby-coloured "Old Red Sandstone" offset by silver-grey granite dressings not only demonstrating good quality workmanship, but also producing a lively two-tone palette; and the slight diminishing in scale of the openings on each floor producing a graduated visual impression with the principal "apartments" defined by polygonal bay windows. Having been well maintained, the elementary form and massing survive intact together with substantial quantities of the original fabric, both to the exterior and to the interior: the introduction of replacement fittings to most of the openings, however, has not had a beneficial impact on the character or integrity of a presbytery forming part of a neat self-contained group alongside the adjacent Catholic Church of the Star of the Sea (see 15618023) with the resulting ecclesiastical ensemble making a pleasing visual statement in a seaside village street scene.