Killemlagh Church ( ga, Cill Imleach) is a ruined 12th-century church in
County Kerry
County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the co ...
in the southwest of Ireland.
Name and location
Killemlagh, or ''Cill Imleach'', means "church (''cill'') on marginal land (''imleach'')", or "church on border land".
John O'Hanlon (1821–1905) states that the name is due to the church lying beside the sea.
The church gives its name to the parish of Killemlagh in the Barony of Iveragh, County Kerry.
The graveyard is locally known as Glen graveyard, after the Glen parish church which adjoins the older Killemlagh Church.
It may be so-named because it is situated within a glen between Knocknaskereighta Mountain to the northeast and Canuig Mountain to the southwest.
The church is on the Skellig Ring drive between
Portmagee
Portmagee () is a village in County Kerry, Ireland. The village is located on the Iveragh peninsula south of Valentia Island, and is known locally as 'the ferry', in reference to its purpose as a crossing point to the island. Access to Valentia I ...
and
Ballinskelligs
Ballinskelligs, officially (Irish for "town (townland) of the craggy rock"), is a townland in the civil parish of Prior, County Kerry, Ireland. It may also refer to the wider district around the townland. It is located in the south-west of the ...
, looking over
St. Finian's Bay
St. Finian's Bay (or St. Finan’s Bay, ga, Bá Fhíonáin) is an exposed bay on the Atlantic coast of County Kerry, Ireland.
Location
St. Finian's Bay is on the Atlantic coast of County Kerry, Ireland.
The bay lies between Puffin Island to ...
.
From the church one can see the
Skellig Islands
The Skellig Islands ( ga, Na Scealaga), once known as "the Skellocks", are two small, steep, and rocky islands lying about west of Bolus Head on the Iveragh Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. The larger of the two is Skellig Michael (also know ...
.
The megalithic stone structure called the "Pagan's Grave" is nearby.
The site is said to be that of the monastery of
Finnian of Clonard
Finnian of Clonard ('Cluain Eraird') – also Finian, Fionán or Fionnán in Irish; or Finianus and Finanus in its Latinised form (470–549) – was one of the early Irish monastic saints, who founded Clonard Abbey in modern-day County Meath. ...
.
To the west of the old church, St. Finin's Well is situated by the sea shore.
Structure
Killemlagh Church was built in the late 12th century.
The style is
Romanesque.
Until the mid-17th century, the church was in good condition, but it has since lost its roof.
A new chapel was attached to the original church, which by then was ruined, in the 19th century.
The new parish church is now also roofless.
According to O'Hanlon, writing in 1875,
The antiquary P.J. Lynch described the church in 1909.
Although the style was generally typical of a church of the 12th century, the shallower pitch of the roof led him to think it might be of later construction.
The stone of the walls are not large, and the green stone of the district was used for the door and window dressings.
The heads of the windows are semi-circular.
The east window is wide at its sill, narrowing to at its head.
The original doorway was in the west end, but this had been filled in.
In 1909, the doorway was in the south side, and the dressings had either been removed or the opening was relatively recent and never had dressings.
The walls were about high above the ground level and thick.
Notes
Sources
*
*
*
*
*
* pp. 42–63 (22 pages)
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Killemlagh Church
12th-century churches in Ireland
Roman Catholic churches in County Kerry