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On a small but prominent hillock in undulating grassland. Possibly the site of a pre-Norman monastery (Conway c. 1980, 2-3), it was probably the site of the medieval parish church (ibid., 14). Described in OS Letters (O'Flanagan 1927, Vol. 1, 79-80) as the 'old church of Bweeounagh ... all destroyed, with the exception of a small fragment of the north side wall. The building was 18 feet broad [5.5m], but its length cannot be ascertained'. All that survives are faint traces of W wall and a fragment of N wall (L 4m, Wth 1m, H 2.8m) of a rectangular building, possibly aligned N-S. The surviving masonry is of roughly coursed limestone blocks. The building stands in N half of a roughly circular graveyard (D c. 50m) defined by a cemented stone wall: there is a modern extension to NW. Conway (ibid., 3-4) mentions 'the carved stones of its Gothic arches strew[ing] the grounds of the little cemetery' but no trace of any architectural fragments was noted. A holy well (GA006-031----) lay 80m to W: a 'monastery' (GA006-030002-) and a wayside monument (GA006-033----) are also associated. (Knight c. 1975, 3)
The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Galway Vol. II - North Galway'. Compiled by Olive Alcock, Kathy de hÓra and Paul Gosling (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1999).
Date of upload: 05 August 2010
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