Church in Mellisson

In grassland, in flat pasture on a N-facing slope of the Slieveardagh Hills with a panoramic views from W through N to E. A tower house (TS048-026001-) lies 100m to the NE, and the ruins of an 18th-century house are nearby to the NW. The church consists of a simple rectangular building (int. dims. 6.75m N-S; 13m E-W; wall T 0.75m; ext. dims 8.25m N-S; 14.8m E-W) constructed with coursed limestone blocks, with a base-batter (H 1.8m) and opposite doors at the W end of the N and S walls, and a first-floor chamber, presumably a priest's residence, within the W end of the church. This chamber was carried on floor timbers carried in the thickness of the wall. There is evidence for a small aumbry in the NW angle of the ground floor of the priest's chambers. There is a twin-light ogee-headed window with hollowed spandrels in the E gable and a small aumbry in the SE angle which has been converted into a slit ope. A simple flat-headed window is E of centre in the S wall and a destroyed window E of centre in the N wall. At the W end of the S wall is a simple slit ope which would have provided light for the ground floor of the priest's chamber. There is no evidence of glazing in any of the windows, but there is an internal rebate in the E window surround for wooden shuttering.A large doorway (Wth 2m) is W of centre in the S wall, with no cut stone surround visible, and another destroyed doorway is directly opposite in the N wall. There is no evidence for a graveyard or any other features in the ground surrounding the church. Compiled by: Jean Farrelly Date of upload: 26 August 2011