Balla Round Tower is an

Irish round tower Irish round towers ( ga, Cloigtheach (singular), (plural); literally 'bell house') are early mediaeval stone towers of a type found mainly in Ireland, with two in Scotland and one on the Isle of Man. As their name indicates, they were origin ...

and

National Monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a spec ...

located in

County Mayo County Mayo (; ga, Contae Mhaigh Eo, meaning "Plain of the Taxus baccata, yew trees") is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Conn ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

Location

Balla Round Tower is located in central Balla, west of the Main Street (part of the N60) on the site of the modern graveyard.

History

A monastery was founded at Balla by Mo Chua of Balla (d. AD 637). The tower is believed to date from the 12th century, judging by the moulding on the lower

jamb A jamb (from French ''jambe'', "leg"), in architecture, is the side-post or lining of a doorway or other aperture. The jambs of a window outside the frame are called “reveals.” Small shafts to doors and windows with caps and bases are known ...

s. The tower was used as a bell-tower in the 19th century.

Description

Balla Round Tower was built with red and brown coursed

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

, and the lower three stories survive. There are two doorways: one in the east up, and an arched north-facing lower down doorway – probably a later insertion. There is only one window, in the south of the tower. The

lintel A lintel or lintol is a type of beam (a horizontal structural element) that spans openings such as portals, doors, windows and fireplaces. It can be a decorative architectural element, or a combined ornamented structural item. In the case of w ...

of the east door reused an old cross slab, and two bullaun stones are built into the base.

References

National Monuments in County Mayo Archaeological sites in County Mayo Towers in the Republic of Ireland {{Mayo-geo-stub