There are actually three churches here. One is rendered and still in use. One is a total ruin. The other is really nice! It is this one that the grid ref refers to.
Standing prettily in the centre of a field, away from the other churches, this one is a pleasure to approach, especially on a sharp, sunny winter day.
It is a simple single roomed building (with no roof now), but it has a lovely (incomplete) Romanesque doorway. There is also some decoration above two of the windows.
Part of the rendered church is 12th century too, but at the time of my visit the east window, which is Romanesque, was covered in ivy.
The site was founded in the 7th century.
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From Tullamore head southwest along the N52. 1.5km after the junction with the R421 you will pass two churches on the right - you're not there yet. After another 1.5km take a right turn - signposted Rahan. Continue along this road until you pass cross the canal. The churches are signposted 300m along this road.
A Random Selection of Nearby Monuments
 Rusheen East (Co. Mayo) |  Layd (Co. Antrim) |  Devenish (Co. Fermanagh) |
 Killelan (Co. Kildare) |  Kilbunny (Co. Waterford) |  St. Molaise's House (Co. Fermanagh) |
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This is an explanation of (and a bit of a disclaimer for) the coordinates I provide. Where a GPS figure is given this is the master for all other coordinates. According to my Garmin these are quite accurate. Where there is no GPS figure the 6 figure grid reference is master for the others. This may not be very accurate as it could have come from the OS maps and could have been read by eye. Consequently, all other cordinates are going to have inaccuracies. The calculation of Longitude and Latitude uses an algorithm that is not 100% accurate. The long/lat figures are used as a basis for calculating the UTM & ITM coordinates. Consequently, UTM & ITM coordinates are slightly out. UTM is a global coordinate system - Universal Transverse Mercator - that is at the core of the GPS system. ITM is the new coordinate system - Irish Transverse Mercator - that is more accurate and more GPS friendly than the Irish Grid Reference system. This will be used on the next generation of Irish OS maps. |
