Minister welcomes recovery of 15th Century Church Window Frame

The Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht has welcomed the recovery of the carved fifteenth century limestone window removed from the gable of a medieval church on Church Island at Lake Garadice on the Cavan/ Leitrim border.

Following a report from a member of the local community who discovered the window frame in shallow water near the lake shore, Gardai from Carrick-on-Shannon carried out the recovery under the supervision of a Garda forensic team. 

An archaeologist from the National Monuments Service of the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht will inspect the window frame to assess whether damage has been caused to the artefact.

Local Fine Gael County Councillor from Newtowngore, John McCartin said the local community was delighted that whoever took the frame had conscience enough not to hold onto it. He paid particular tribute to The Anglo-Celt for the role this newspaper played in highlighted the unwarranted removal.

The window is a significant part of the medieval church structure on Church Island and conservation works were undertaken in recent years on the church by the Ballinamore Development Association and the Everan Foundation, with contributions from members of the Breifne Historical Society.

Minister Jimmy Deenihan expressed his gratitude to An Garda Síochána and to Patrick Bradley who found the window frame, “I am very pleased that the window frame has been recovered.  I want to pay tribute to the Gardaí at Carrick-on-Shannon for their work and, in particular, to Mr. Bradley. 

'This case once again outlines the key role played by local communities in protecting and safeguarding our national heritage.  I am grateful to those amongst the public and the media who have helped to raise awareness of the incident and have contributed to the recovery of the window frame.”

An outer facing stone from a gun loop in the tower of a bawn on neighbouring Crane Island (also known as Slasher’s Island) in Lake Garadice is still however still missing. 

Anyone with any knowledge of either incident should contact the Gardai in Carrick-on-Shannon, Co. Leitrim, Tel 071 9620021 or his Department’s National Monuments Service at nationalmonuments@ahg.gov.ie or 01 8882169.

See this week's newspaper for full report