Church Island (Valentia Harbour)

Church Island is a medieval Christian monastery and National Monument located in Valentia Harbour, Ireland. [3]

Church Island

Oileán an Teampaill[1]
Location within Ireland
Monastery information
Established	7th century AD
Disestablished	before 1100
Diocese	Kerry
Architecture
Status	ruined
Style	Celtic
Site
Location	Valentia Harbour, County Kerry
Coordinates	51.937597°N 10.283343°W
Public access	yes
National Monument of Ireland
Official name	Church Island (Valentia Harbour) Early Medieval Ecclesiastical Site[2]
Reference no.	59

Location

Church Island is located on a 1-acre (0.4 ha) island in Valentia Harbour, immediately west of Beginish, 1.4 km (0.87 mi) north of Knightstown.[4]

History

The island was anciently a centre for iron smelting.

The monastery was established in the 7th century AD.[5]

Excavations by M. J. O'Kelly in 1955–56 turned up the remnants of a wooden oratory and a cross inscribed with Ogham.[6][7][8][9] It also gave evidence of the diet of the monks: cod, ballan wrasse, oats, barley, gannet, shag, cormorant, goose, duck, beef, mutton, pork, goat meat, horsemeat and seal.[10]

Description

Contains the remains of a stone oratory, clochán (possibly a hospitium),[11] and holy well.

References

1. "Oileán an Teampaill/Church Island". Logainm.ie.
2. https://www.archaeology.ie/sites/default/files/media/pdf/monuments-in-state-care-kerry.pdf
3. Lynch, P. J. (8 March 2018). "Church Island, Valentia Harbour, Co. Kerry". The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland. 10 (2): 155–160. JSTOR 25507048.
4. GoKerry.ie. "Church Island, Valentia Harbour, Valentia Island - GoKerry". www.gokerry.ie.
5. Ireland, Royal Society of Antiquaries of (1901). Journal – via Internet Archive. Church Island valentia.
6. "The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland". The Society. 8 March 2018 – via Google Books.
7. Hendroff, Adrian (30 March 2015). Killarney to Valentia Island – The Iveragh Peninsula: A Walking Guide. The Collins Press. ISBN 9781848895522 – via Google Books.
8. "Church island, valencia harbour, County Kerry". www.earlychristianireland.net.
9. Activeme.ie. "Church Island Monastic Settlement, Valentia Harbour, Kerry, Ireland – Things to See and Do - Activeme.ie". www.activeme.ie.
10. "The unknown Kerry beauty of Church Island laying low to the surrounding Lough Kay". 20 November 2017.
11. Addleshaw, George William Outram (8 March 1973). The Pastoral Structure of the Celtic Church in Northern Britain. Borthwick Publications. ISBN 9780900701375 – via Google Books.