Cóilín Ó Drisceoil

Celebrating 800 years since its foundation this year, Kilkenny’s ‘Black Abbey’ is the only one of the 38 medieval Dominican houses in Ireland that still serves its original purpose. The medieval friary, albeit much reduced from its medieval splendour, is also one of the best-preserved in both Ireland and Britain, and it houses a remarkable collection of medieval tomb monuments. Its foundation by the great Anglo-Norman magnate William Marshal the younger, its use a dynastic burial place for many of Kilkenny’s most powerful families, and its turbulent post-Reformation history, also mark it out as a key site in the study of the medieval monasticism. Despite its importance, however, the ‘Black Abbey’ has not received the same level of research enjoyed by many other monastic sites in Ireland. The lecture will present, for the first time, new discoveries that have been made in recent months, as well as the fascinating results of archaeological excavations and investigations that have taken place in its cemetery and precinct over the past 40 years. 

Cóilín Ó Drisceoil is a state archaeologist with the National Monuments Service. Between 1999-2021 he was the director of Kilkenny Archaeology, archaeological consultancy, where he undertook numerous excavations and buildings archaeology investigations in Kilkenny, including leading major excavations at St Mary’s church, Talbot’s Tower, Rothe House garden and Highhays. He has published widely on Kilkenny’s medieval and post-medieval archaeology and his books include: (with John Bradley and Michael Potterton), William Marshal and Ireland (Four Courts Press, 2017); Materialising Power: The Archaeology of the Black Pig’s Dyke (Wordwell, 2021) and Highhays, Kilkenny: A Medieval Pottery Production Centre in South-East Ireland (Oxbow Books, 2022). He is a committee member of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland and the Irish Walled Towns Network.