Carlow April 2009

Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland

Tour to Leighlinbridge, Old Leighlin & Royal Oak
County Carlow

Saturday April 4th 2009


9.30am Depart from Dublin

11.00am Garden of Remembrance, Leighlinbridge, County Carlow

11.30am Drive past Holloden Estate, Royal Oak and on to
Burgage Estate, Leighlinbridge, Co. Carlow

12.30pm Visit Dinn Righ in the grounds of Burgage Estate
(suitable footwear to cross a field to the site)

1.30pm Lunch - Lord Bagenal Hotel, Leighlinbridge

2.45pm Tour of St. Laserian’s Cathedral & Holy Well, Old Leighlin

4.30pm Tea/ coffee - Arboretum Lifestyle & Garden Centre, Leighlinbridge.

5.15pm Depart for Dublin
During September 2008 the Royal Society of Antiquaries (RSAI) launched an exhibition “Rubbing Shoulders with the Dead” in Merrion Square. This exhibition received support from Carlow Local Authorities through Carlow County Museum and the Community & Enterprise Department. The exhibition was based on the 19th century grave rubbings taken by members of Society including some by Carlow’s Philip Doyne Vigors. One of the most interesting of these rubbings is that taken at of St Mullins. Included in this particular rubbing are rare images of five Irish saints - St Mullins, St Patrick, St Brigid, St Columcille and St James. The RSAI tour to County Carlow will focus on the Vigors Family connections to Leighlinbridge, Old Leighlin and the Royal Oak.
Garden of Remembrance:
Located in the heart of Leighlinbridge the garden has been developed over the past eighteen years to commemorate a number of important individuals, who were from or whose ancestors came from the area such as scientist John Tyndall or former Prime Minister of Canada, Brian Mulroney. Contains Ireland’s first all county World War 1 memorial as well as a plaque commemorating Nicholas Aylward Vigors, FRS.

Holloden Estate:
The location from where the Philip Doyne Vigors coordinated the “Association for the Preservation of the Memorials of the Dead”, a national organisation which published graveyard and headstone inscriptions.

Burgage Estate:
Until 1978 this was the main estate of the Vigors Family in County Carlow. The Vigors Family came to the area in the mid 17th century. Nicholas Aylward Vigors, FRS was the first secretary of the London Zoological Society. Now owned by the Connolly Family.

Dinn Righ:
The Uí Chinnsealaigh, Kings of Leinster had one of their fortresses at Dinn Righ. According to tradition this immense hill fort was destroyed by Labraidh Loinseach.
The site is located on the lands of Burgage Estate and is normally not accessible to the public.

St. Laserian’s Cathedral & Holy Well:
Carlow’s oldest working building which dates back to the 13th century was originally founded in the early 7th century by St. Gobban and in 630AD a synod was held here to consider the correct time for the celebration of Easter. The near by Holy Well is still venerated with its pattern day celebrated on April 18th. The Church has close associations to the Vigors Family.


Guides for the Day:
Dermot Mulligan, Museum Curator, Carlow County Museum

Martin Nevin, former President of the Carlow Historical & Archaeological Society, joint Editor of Carloviana & Chairman of the Board of Carlow County Museum

Rev. Gordon Wynne, Dean of St. Laserian’s Cathedral, Old Leighlin.

On Vigors in Carlow
Linda Doran


On Saturday forty members of the Society, lead by the President Charles Doherty,
visited County Carlow. The trip was arranged by Dermot Mulligan, Curator of the Carlow County Museum It had been suggested to the then President Aideen Ireland by Dermot, when a group from Carlow County and Town Councils visited the ‘Rubbing Shoulders with the Dead’ exhibition held in Society House last September. Generous sponsorship of greeting cards bearing images from gravestones at St Mullins and featured in the exhibition had been organised by Dermot. These cards proved to be a great success. The connection between the Society and Col. P.D. Vigors, a prominent member of the RSAI and the founder of the Society for the Preservation of the Memorials of the Dead, was the theme of the journey. Siobhán de hÓir, the author of a number of papers on Vigors and a speaker on his work at the lunch-time lectures that accompanied the exhibition, was part of the group.
The bus bearing the RSAI party arrived in Leighlinbridge just after eleven o’clock and were met by Dermot and Martin Nevin, our guide for the day, at the Garden of Remembrance on the bank of the River Barrow. After an introduction to the history of Leighlinbridge by Martin the group departed for the Vigors’ estate at Holloden. Dermot and Martin had arranged that the group could visit the house, now ruined, but unfortunately the bus was unable to fit through the gate! Siobhán, however, gave a short talk outlining the relationship between Vigors and the Society and his contribution to both the RSAI and the Mems Dead. We then travelled on to the Burgage Estate, home of Philip Vigors and now in the careful hands of the Connolly family who, in the tradition of the Vigors before them, run a stud farm on the estate. The members were welcomed into the charming Georgian house (built around 1760), by Elizabeth and Victor Connolly, their son and his dogs.
Victor delivered the members a brief outline of the history of the houses — Holloden and Burgage —and their association with the Vigors family. This took place in thedrawing-room looking over the view that inspired the hymn All things bright and beautiful. Later the group were permitted to examine various documents that were part of the house archive. The fine weather allowed a short walk around the wonderful grounds that overlook the River Barrow. The President thanked the Connolly family on behalf of the Society for the privilege of visiting their home and examining parts of the archive. He also pledged the Society’s help in gaining funding for its cataloguing and preservation.
Following lunch in the Lord Bagenal Hotel, Leighlinbridge, the group went to the impressive and important early ritual site of Dinn Rígh in the grounds of the Burgage Estate. Martin outlined references to the site from the Book of Leinster and in local tradition. The President gave a short talk placing the site in context during which he reminded those members who visited the O’Neill inauguration mound at Tullaghoge with the Society last Summer of the similarities between that site and Dinn Rígh. Several people, including our bus driver, climbed to the top of the mound.
The last visit of the day was to St. Laserian’s Cathedral and Holy Well in Old Leighlin. Here the group were meet by the rector Dean GordonWynne. Dean Wynne initiated his talk at the Holy Well because he said that he wanted to remind us that it was the source of the significance of this place. He also drew our attention to the importance for rural communities in the past of uncontaminated water. The group then walked across to the cathedral where Dean Wynne outlined the history of the site and later showed the group the building. Dermot pointed out a plaque in the choir commemorating the finding of a Gothic doorway that marked the entrance to the medieval Lady’s Chapel. This occurred on the afternoon of the Society’s last visit to Carlow in 1893. Sadly nothing quite so spectacular happened last Saturday. Dermot sent me the following extract from Carlow Historical & Archaeological Society’s 2008 edition of Carloviana, page 72 (see also JRSAI 1893 p.234-5), commemorating the find.

"Antiquarian Discovery at Leighlin:
A discovery of a most interesting nature was made at the Cathedral of St Laserian on Tuesday last. While some workmen were engaged in breaking open an apeture in the north wall of the chancel, where it was intended to build an organ chamber, a perfect Gothic doorway was brought to light, which was evidently an ancient entrance to the Lady Chapel. About a yard to the left of this doorway, and at a height of 4 feet from the ground, there was discovered a small chamber, about 6 inches square at entrance, and extending about 3 feet into the wall, in which there were two human bones-the forearm bone and other possibly a shoulder bone-which were doubtless were relics, and had been placed in the chamber built into the wall for safety during one of those frequently occurring outbreaks of violence in the olden times.

By a curious coincidence, this interesting discovery was made about an hour previous to the visit of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland to Old Leighlin, and the circumstances naturally attracted much attention from the visitors, and photographs were taken of the chamber and its contents by some of those present. The Rector of the parish, the rev. Canon Abbott, has taken charge of the objects for the present, and it is intended to construct a similar receptacle for them as near as practicable to the spot where they were found, and to place a slab in front indicating the fact and particulars of the discovery. May 1893."



As the visit drew to a close the President thanked Dean Wynne for welcoming the Society to the Cathedral and for his informative and thought provoking words. He also thanked Dermot and Martin for all their hard work in organising a very special and most enjoyable visit.





download high resolution picture of RSAI visit to St. Laserian's Cathedral Old Leighlin Co. Carlow April 2009

download high resolution picture of RSAI visit to Dinn Righ Co Carlow April 2009 pic 2

download high resolution picture of RSAI visit to Dinn Righ Co Carlow April 2009 pic 1

download high resolution picture of RSAI visit to Burgage House Co Carlow April 2009 pic 3

download high resolution picture of RSAI visit to Burgage House Co Carlow April 2009 pic 2


Dinn Righ


visit to Burgage House


Burgage House


Burgage House

Dinn Righ