Durrow Abbey

National Monument No. 313. No abbey building is depicted on the 1838 ed. OS 6-inch map. The revised 1908 ed. OS 25-inch map depicts ‘St. Columbkille’s Abbey (Site of)’ as being located in the NW quadrant of Durrow graveyard (OF009-005009-). The present late 18th century C of I church (OF009-005013-) standing in the SE quadrant of the graveyard may have been built on the site of the Augustinian Abbey church which was founded in the 12th century on the site of the sixth century monastery reputedly founded by St Colum Cille. The Augustinian abbey dedicated to St Mary was founded in the 1140s by Murchadh Ua Maoil Sheachlainn, high king of Midhe, who died at Durrow in 1153 (Ó Riain 2011, 67; Gwynn and Hadcock 1970, 174). In 1541 the Abbey was converted into a parish church and was restored in the 18th century and again in 1802. No surface traces remain of the ecclesiastical enclosure (OF009-005003-) (Orpen 1907, 140) or of the Augustinian abbey (Hadcock 1964, 128). (Crawford 1913, 262-65; Lionard 1961, 95-169; Moran 1966, 289; Harbison 1970, 205-6; Barrow 1979, 176).

In 2006 limited excavations were undertaken by Tracy Collins of Aegis Archaeology Ltd at Durrow under licence No. CO02, E3161, as part of the ongoing conservation works at the National Monument, on behalf of the OPW. Three areas were investigated. Two were dug around the church in order to facilitate the rendering of the structure and ducting. The third area was around where the high cross (OF009-005010-) had stood. (It was moved for conservation reasons inside the church (OF009-005013-) structure.) Nothing of an archaeological nature was discovered in the first two areas; two skeletons were left preserved in situ. An area around where the cross had stood measuring 5m by 5m was opened to address the following research questions: Was the cross in its original position? What was it sitting on? Was there an earlier cross? Further information was required on the context of a cross slab excavated by De Paor in 1954: did it cover a grave, for instance?

The excavation around the cross site showed that burial had occurred to the north, south and east of the cross base. Seventeen individuals were excavated, along with much disarticulated remains. Initial examination suggests that all the burials were late in date, probably none earlier than the 18th century. The cross appears to have been in its original (early medieval) position, in that all burials respected the location of the cross base. The cross rested on a layer of redeposited boulder clay, which contained a few fragments of animal bone. There was no evidence of an earlier timber cross at this location, nor was there any evidence of burial beneath the cross. The excavation results would suggest that the cross slab found by De Paor did not cover a specific grave but may have been placed to the east of the cross in order to ‘close’ that area from any further burial – perhaps placed there in the 19th century.

Finds from the excavation included coffin nails and fittings, holy medals and a few shroud pins. Nothing of clearly early medieval date was recovered. A series of radiocarbon dates is proposed for the site, including the animal bone fragments recovered from beneath the cross base, which should provide a firm sequence for burial at the site and a date for the redeposited layer beneath the cross (Bennett 2009, 449).