A shrine to St Columba

This was the site of an early church that held a shrine of St Columcille. that had been brought from Iona in Scotland for safe-keeping. This attracted unwanted attention and the annals recorded that it was plundered in 974, 986, 1037, 1058, and in 1127 when the shrine was stolen but later returned! Its name eventually changed from Scrín Colum Chille to Skreen. The church was built in 1341 and the tower was added in the mid-1400s for defensive purposes. Inside the tower are the fragments of a baptismal font, a tomb slab, and to the northeast of the church stands a medieval cross. The great thing about this site is that you can enjoy a pint across the road in the famous O’Connell’s Pub. This lovely traditional drinking establishment was made famous as it was used in a Christmas Guinness advertisement.