2008:796 - St Catherine d’Conyl, Old Abbey, Limerick

This site is located almost 3km to the south-east of Shanagolden. The site comprises an extant church and cloister complex of medieval buildings, with outlying associated features such as dovecote or columbarium, fishpond and arched gateway. The site was founded for Augustinian canonesses sometime before 1261 (Begley 1906, 375; Gwynn and Hadcock 1970, 307–9). This site is one of three in Munster which retain their cloister layouts, the others being Killone, Co. Clare, and Molough, Co. Tipperary (Collins 2007).
Test-trenching was undertaken at this site for the purposes of PhD research on the topic of medieval nunneries in Ireland. Four trenches were opened and all yielded archaeological material. The spoil of all trenches was scanned with a metal detector to aid in the retrieval of metal finds. Nothing of an archaeological nature was retrieved during this exercise.
Trench 1 was located immediately to the north-west of the church’s west doorway, orientated east–west and measured 5.1m in length by 1m and was a maximum depth of 0.4m. The purpose of this trench was to examine the ambulatory area immediately outside the fine western doorway of the nunnery church. This trench revealed evidence of an ambulatory/cloister garth wall of roughly coursed limestone rubble construction at the west end of the trench which measured 1.2m in width and remained to a height of 0.3m. Several metalled surfaces were found to the east of this wall. Beneath the lowermost surface several human skeletons (in a poor state of preservation) were revealed. They included remains of an adult male and several juveniles (identifications by L.G. Lynch). Artefacts included an iron pruning hook and a sherd of late 12th/early 13th-century Saintonge pottery and a single sherd of 17th-century blackware (identifications by C. McCutcheon).
Trench 2 was located at the east end of the church. It was orientated north–south, measured 2m by 1m and was dug to a depth of 1m. The purpose of this trench was to investigate the east end of the church and the altar location. This trench was quite disturbed, although two grave-cuts were tentatively identified. An amount of disarticulated human and animal bone was recovered from the trench, along with a fragment of a 15th/16th-century brass socketed candlestick holder. No evidence for the altar was found.
Trench 3 was located in the refectory room of the complex. It was orientated east–west and measured 2.2m by 1m and was 0.6m in depth. The purpose of this trench was to investigate floor coverings used in the refectory and to explore the area around the ‘reader’s recess’, a thinning of the south wall of the refectory under one of its lancet windows, which created a niche for a seat/standing room, for the nun who read aloud during designated times. While nothing further was noted in relation to the recess, the floor surface of the refectory was found to be a rough stony metalled surface which rested directly on the natural reddish-brown boulder clay.
Trench 4 was located around the base of the southern jamb of the west doorway of the nunnery church. This revealed the threshold of the church doorway to be composed of small flat stones bound by mortar. This trench also confirmed the presence of further burials in the west end of the church, including an adult male and female.
This completes the first season of investigation on the site. A second season is planned for spring 2009.
References
Begley, Rev. J. 1906 The Diocese of Limerick ancient and medieval 3 vols. Dublin.
Collins, T. 2007 The other monasticism Killone Co. Clare. Heritage Guide No. 38. Bray.
Gwynn, A. and Hadcock, R.N. 1970 Medieval religious houses: Ireland. Dublin.