Inishturk / Inis Toirc

St Columba's Chapel and Bullaun, Craggy Townland

The island church and the graveyard in Craggy townland are dedicated to St Columba. Traditionally the islanders believed the pile of stones pictured below, are the remains of an earlier church also dedicated to the saint. There is no historical reference of St Columba/Colmcille actually visiting Inishturk and surprisingly there are scant remains of christian activity on the island. I am surprised because Caher Island, the closest to Inshturk is a thriving pilgrimage site, also the Inishkea Islands off the north coast of Mayo are also early christian pilgrimage sites. Both Inishturk and Caher are in the Parish of Kilgeever.

Bullaun Stone

Nestled amongst the structural remains is the a large bullaun stone pictured below. Bullauns are probably one of the most common artifacts found at early christian sites, they were generally used for grinding and can predate christianity. A lot of them were reused as water fonts. The water collected in some bullauns are believed to have healing properties. Some are used in cursing rituals, see St Brigid's stones in Killinagh, County Cavan.are sThe wer