St. Columb's House (or ''St. Columcille's House'') is an oratory 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 sp ...

in Kells,

County Meath County Meath ( ; or simply , ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is bordered by County Dublin to the southeast, County ...

, Ireland.

Location

St. Columb's House is located on Church Lane in Kells, immediately northwest of the

Abbey of Kells The Abbey of Kells () or Kells Priory is a former monastery in Kells, County Meath, Ireland, north-west of Dublin. It was founded in the early 9th century, and the Book of Kells was kept there during the later medieval and early modern perio ...

History

St. Columb's House is today thought to mostly date to the 10th century. It is named after

Columba Columba () or Colmcille (7 December 521 – 9 June 597 AD) was an Irish abbot and missionary evangelist credited with spreading Christianity in what is today Scotland at the start of the Hiberno-Scottish mission. He founded the important abbey ...

(Colm Cille), whose relics it may once have housed. The roof was modified at a later date. The house was used by monks to say the

Liturgy of the Hours The Liturgy of the Hours (), Divine Office (), or ''Opus Dei'' ("Work of God") are a set of Catholic prayers comprising the canonical hours, often also referred to as the breviary, of the Latin Church. The Liturgy of the Hours forms the official ...

, or possibly as a

shrine A shrine ( "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred space">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ...: ''escri ...

church or burial place of an

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the head of an independent monastery for men in various Western Christian traditions. The name is derived from ''abba'', the Aramaic form of the Hebrew ''ab'', and means "father". The female equivale ...

. It once contained a large flat stone called "St Columb's Bed", possibly a grave slab. His relics were brought to Kells in 878, and moved to

Skryne Church Skryne Church is a ruined medieval church and National Monument (Ireland), National Monument in County Meath, Ireland. Location Skryne Church is located atop the Hill of Skryne, northwest of Skryne village, east of the Hill of Tara. History ...

later before finally going to

Downpatrick Downpatrick () is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is on the Lecale peninsula, about south of Belfast. In the Middle Ages, it was the capital of the Dál Fiatach, the main ruling dynasty of Ulaid. Down Cathedral, Its cathedral is sai ...

Building

St. Columb's House is a rectangular building with a very high pointed roof. Internally there was originally a high floor 1.5 m (5 feet) above the ground, but this is gone. The loft contains three separate rooms. An underground passage connecting the house with the nearby church is mentioned by the ''Annals of the four Masters'' and a 17th-century survey.

References

{{Reflist Religion in County Meath Archaeological sites in County Meath National monuments in County Meath Former churches in County Meath Church ruins in Ireland Religious buildings and structures in County Meath Kells, County Meath