Unofficial guide. Not the National Monuments Service, the OPW, Fáilte Ireland or the landowner. Disclaimer
At a glance
- TypeChurch
- Recorded sizeint. 16m E-W x 7m N-S
What to look for
- East window
- Graveyard
Picked out from the Archaeological Survey description below.
Can you visit?
- No source says it is open to the public.Most monuments in Ireland stand on private farmland.
- Ask the landowner before crossing fields, close gates, leave the stones as you find them.Visiting responsibly
History and description
Midway down a N-facing slope with good views from NW-W-SW. Centrally placed within a rectangular graveyard (KK025-002002-) is a heavily ivy-clad rectangular church (int. dims. 16m E-W x 7m N-S), orientated roughly E-W, constructed of roughly coursed limestone and granite. All the walls (T c. 1.2m) are upstanding (E gable H 1.2m) with the exception of the N wall which survives only to its foundations in places.
Full archaeological record 244 words
Midway down a N-facing slope with good views from NW-W-SW. Centrally placed within a rectangular graveyard (KK025-002002-) is a heavily ivy-clad rectangular church (int. dims. 16m E-W x 7m N-S), orientated roughly E-W, constructed of roughly coursed limestone and granite. All the walls (T c. 1.2m) are upstanding (E gable H 1.2m) with the exception of the N wall which survives only to its foundations in places. The church was entered through a round-headed doorway of roughly cut granite at the W end of the S wall. The visible windows include a flat-headed single-light window at the E end of the S wall and a chamfered limestone two-light window at attic level in the W gable. At the E end of the S wall there is an unusual semi-circular bowl-shaped granite piscina (dims. 0.3m x 0.2m; H 0.2m) which projects out of the wall. The upper surface of the piscina is concave with fluting which runs into a circular drainage channel in the wall. There is an aumbry (dims. 0.5m x 0.4m; D 0.3m) with granite surrounds W of the piscina. Within the nave area of the church there is a font (KK025-002003-) and a free-standing octagonal limestone stoup (H 0.5m; max. Wth 0.4m tapering to 0.25m; T of rim 0.5m; circular bowl diam. 0.17m; D 0.13m), which tapers towards the top and bottom. The middle, or widest point, of the stoup is decorated in false relief with a band of crudely executed interlace.
Archaeological Survey of Ireland, National Monuments Service (CC BY 4.0) · Compiled by Jean Farrelly · Updated 23 February 2022. It describes the site as it was when surveyed.
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Dungarvan Church (site of)
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Ballynaboley Church
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Kylebeg Church
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Also recorded nearby
Named sites within 5 km with only a short entry in the Archaeological Survey.
- ToberkyleRitual site - holy well · Gorteen (Gowran By.) · 3.9 km · official record
Indicated as 'Toberkyle' in Gothic script on the 1st (1839) ed. OS 6-inch map and on the 1900 revision.
- TobernadeanRitual site - holy well · Pollagh (Gowran By.) · 4.6 km · official record
In a small wooded area. Indicated on the 1st (1839) ed. OS 6-inch map and the 1900 revision as 'Tobernavean', with a stream running eastward from the well.
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Around Grange Upper Church
Other heritage nearby
- Neigham CastleCastle · 1.6 km
- Ballyshanemore CastleCastle · 2.4 km
- CIIC 32 (Ogham Stone Concept by RAS Macalister)Ogham stone · 2.4 km
- St Patrick's WellHoly well · 2.8 km
- Bastionfort WellHoly well · 2.9 km
- Drumroe CastleCastle · 3.7 km
Recorded within 5 km
- 8 castlesArchaeological Survey of Ireland
- 6 holy wellsArchaeological Survey of Ireland
- 5 ancient churchesArchaeological Survey of Ireland
- 1 ogham stoneArchaeological Survey of Ireland
- 1 abbey or friaryArchaeological Survey of Ireland
- 1 megalithic tombArchaeological Survey of Ireland
- 1 ringfortArchaeological Survey of Ireland
Walks and trails
- East Kilkenny Cycle RouteRoad Cycling Trail · 62.6 km · nearest point 2.4 km
- Barrow WayLong Distance Waymarked Way · 117.0 km · nearest point 4.4 km
- The Columban Way - St Mullins Feeder (River Route)Pilgrim Path · 30.9 km · nearest point 6.1 km
Outdoors, towns and places to stay
- GowranWalled towns · 2.5 km
- ThomastownWalled towns · 12 km
Other attractions nearby
- St Mary's Church GowranHistoric Houses and Castle · 2.4 km
- Tullaherin Round TowerHistoric Houses and Castle · 7.5 km
- St Moling's Trail - Driving RouteHistoric Houses and Castle · 7.5 km
- Kilfane Glen and WaterfallGardens · 7.8 km
What's on nearby
- Pa Sheehy The Magic We Found Tour2026-11-05 · 15 km
- Kilkenomics2026-11-06 · 15 km
- Kilkenomics2026-11-07 · 15 km


