About
At the east end of Lorrha village, west of Birr and close to the Shannon, the monastery of St Ruadhán, the sixth-century 'lamp of Lothra', has left a cluster of monuments a minute's walk apart. The old stone church, perhaps of the 11th century, has massive masonry, a priest's room built over a vaulted west end, and a 15th-century south doorway carved with vine leaves, a rose and a pelican drawing blood from its breast; the Church of Ireland church of 1813 was built onto its east gable. In the graveyard stand the decorated bases of two eighth or ninth-century high crosses, one carved with Daniel in the lions' den. Just around the corner, past St Ruadhán's Well, are the 15th-century ruins of the Augustinian priory, its west doorway crowned by a woman's head in a horned headdress that still shows traces of blue paint, with two small figures at prayer. Reviewers find the grounds spotless and recall that the Stowe Missal was once kept at Lorrha.
Open in daylightFrom OPW Heritage Ireland's published times
- Open any reasonable time in daylight
Opening times may change at short notice.
An unguided open-air national monument in OPW's care with no staff and no facilities. OPW warns that care and caution should be kept throughout a visit to its unguided sites.
This record also covers OPW's separate entry for Lorrha Augustinian Priory (https://heritageireland.ie/unguided-sites/lorrha-augustinian-priory/), 88 m north-west of the old church: its gate on the street is reported closed but not locked.
The 1813 Church of Ireland church is a working parish church, usually open only for services. A visitor in 2025 found the old church's interior closed by long-running works; OPW posts no notice.
Short paths into a graveyard still in use; the grass can be wet. No toilets. The Dominican Priory at the west end of the village is a separate record.
Photo: The old church of St Ruadhán at Lorrha, its pointed south doorway beside the 1813 parish church built onto its east gable. Andreas F. Borchert, CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lorrha_Old_St._Ruadhan%27s_Parish_Church_SE_2010_09_04.jpg. Licence: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0. Resized and cropped for display; derivatives retain the source licence.
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