1998:060 - BRIDGETOWN ABBEY, Bridgetown, Cork

The Augustinian Priory complex at Bridgetown consists of a cloister, with church on the north side, refectory on the south and ruinous chapter range on the east side. At the west end of the church is an inserted two-storey tower. On the west side of the cloister, where the present excavations took place, the ground level is c. 4m higher than that within the cloister, and no structures survive above ground. The excavations are part of an ongoing programme of conservation and recording being carried out on the priory by Cork County Council, the owners of the site.

Ground level on the west side of the priory is c. 4m higher than that within it, and, because of water percolation through the west walls of the church tower and refectory, it was felt that conservation work would be necessary on these walls. These test excavations were carried out in advance of conservation.

On the west side of the refectory the foundations of two walls running west from the refectory wall were uncovered. These were constructed on a layer of stone rubble and are parts of two separate buildings. They appear to have been built after Bridgetown had ceased to function as a priory, possibly by the farmer to whom the buildings were granted in the period after the Dissolution. The most southerly of the two is well rendered internally and probably had a domestic function. A layer of slate and stone rubble found at the south end of the cutting represents the destruction of this building, while the cobblestones found at the base of the cutting are remains of its floor. As the foundation of the building is at the same level as the first floor of the refectory, it may have been used in conjunction with the refectory as domestic quarters long after the other priory buildings had fallen into disrepair. This protracted use could explain why the refectory remains the best preserved of the priory buildings.

Structures uncovered in the cutting to the west of the church were clearly built after the rebuilding of the church tower. They therefore belong to a late phase in the history of the priory and may be contemporary with the structures to the west of the refectory. They include a small, rectangular chamber measuring 2.6m x 2.4m, within which was a chimney c. 1m high. While the north wall of the chamber has shallow foundations, the foundations of the south and west walls go much deeper and were not uncovered. These may have been the walls of the original church, which was subsequently shortened. The lintel of the chimney is part of the jamb of a late medieval doorway with chamfered edge and rounded chamfer-stop. The lintel is unusually low so that the actual fireplace is a pit sunk below ground level.

It was evident that there are other buildings to the west of this extending under the baulk.

An isolated deposit of iron slag was found in this cutting. The location of the furnace that produced it is unknown, but it is unlikely to have been the chimney already noted as the intense heat required for the smelting process would have left a more obvious impression on the stonework and soil around it.

Because these were test excavations not all the exposed features were fully investigated. It is clear, however, that most of the features uncovered belong to a late phase in the history of the priory and, in all likelihood, to a period after its abandonment as a monastic site, i.e. late 16th/early 17th century. Possible exceptions to this are the west and south walls of the chamber to the west of the church, which may be part of the original church. However, only further excavations will determine whether this is the case.

Ballynanelagh, Rathcormac, Co. Cork