What is recorded here

Killyon Manor, a seventeenth-century fortified house in County Offaly, fell to demolition, but one datestone marked Anno Dom 1627 N H survived. The stone now sits in the southeast corner of the Rath parish hall, carrying a ghost of the lost gatehouse and its small round towers. It may have stood where St. Ciaran of Saiger once founded a nunnery, linking medieval prayer to later gun loops and human ambition.

A datestone with the inscription 'Anno Dom 1627 N H' was taken from the levelled seventeenth century fortified house (OF036-035002-) and bawn (OF036-035001-) known as Killyon Manor and was inserted into the SE corner of the parish hall in the village of Rath. According to O' Flanagan (1933, vol. 2, 19) St. Ciaran of Saiger founded a nunnery at Killiadhuin [Killyon] in the fifth century. A seventeenth century fortified house and bawn is locally believed to have been built on the site of this nunnery. Cooke (1875, 178) described Killyon Castle as having a large square shaped gatehouse which opened onto a courtyard with small round flanking towers with gun loops visible. According to Cooke (1875, 182) the site of Killyon manor was occupied by a person named Herbert (Harbart) in 1634. To see a 3D model of this date-stone, visit; https://skfb.ly/oxRWG Compiled and revised by: Caimin O'Brien. Date of revised upload: 4 January 2016

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