Saint Mary's Catholic Church

Freestanding cast-iron bell stand, erected c.1920, to south of church, comprising four fluted round-plan cast-iron columns with relief acanthus ornamentation. Cast-iron bell. Elaborate bracket system with decorative crosses. Fabricated by M. Byrne, Dublin, with maker's marks. Column bases are set in a recent raised plinth with chamfered edges and stone cladding, dated 2000.

This bell stand has an elegant form and is located on an elevated site giving it an iconic presence in the local landscape. It is a twentieth-century addition to the grounds of the nineteenth-century Church of Saint Mary, dated 1812, the absence of a belfry being a common feature of early nineteenth-century Roman Catholic chapels built before Catholic Emancipation in 1829. Its addition serves as an interesting reminder of Penal restrictions when Roman Catholic churches were not entitled to have a bell for worship. This structure remains an important historical document and an integral icon of the architectural and social heritage of County Monaghan. A very similar bell stand, also fabricated by M. Byrne, can be seen at Saints Peter and Paul's Church at Drumgoosat, and further afield in Beragh, County Tyrone, Banteer County Cork, Ballynacarrigy County Westmeath and Holy Trinity Church in Newcastle-under-Lyme. M. Byrne stands for Matthew Byrne of the Fountain Head Bell Foundry Dublin.