Page 10 - Leaflet-A4_FINALv3

Other features contemporary with
the church site include a bullaun
stone and two small stone crosses.
The term ‘bullaun’ (from the Irish
word ‘bullán’, which means a
round hollow in a stone, or a bowl)
is applied to boulders of stone or
bedrock with hollows or basin-like
depressions. Their exact function
is unknown but they may have
functioned as mortars for grinding,
or used for religious purposes and
are often found at early medieval
church sites like Preban.
The Dissolution of the Monasteries
between 1536 and 1541 by Henry
VIII ordered the closure of Catholic
monasteries, priories, convents and
friaries and transferred their lands
to those loyal to the king. Henry
introduced the Protestant faith as
the established church. He declared
himself head of this new church and
seized all the income and assets
of the Catholic Church. This policy
of dissolution was envisaged to
increase the crown’s income and to
fund military campaigns. We do not
know when exactly Preban fell out of
use as there are no historic records.
However monastic sites such as
Preban would have been dissolved
under the reign of Henry VIII.
In the 17th century Preban parish
is listed as being in the possession
of Thomas Wentworth the 1st Earl
of Stratford and Lord Deputy of
Ireland. Wentworth had property
in England but wanted to establish
himself in Ireland and acquired
8 9
over sixty thousand acres in Wicklow. He
has been described as clever scheming
and manipulative to such an extent that
he was known as Black Tom. During the
eighteenth and nineteenth centuries
Preban became a popular burial ground
with at least fifteen different stone masons
erecting headstones in the graveyard.
Bullán stone. Note the bowl which may have been
used for grinding or religious purposes.
Stone crosses from Preban Graveyard.
The Stone Masons
There is a treasure trove of 18th century headstones here in Preban which
is an open-air art gallery of 18th century sculpture. Chris Corlett’s book
‘Here Lyeth The 18th-century headstones of Wicklow’ has been our bible
in relation to identifying the stone masons at Preban. We have tried to
identify all the stonemasons working here between the period 1759 and
1819 and to date that is eight stonemasons who carved thirty headstones
in Preban.
These were professional stone There are nine more headstones
cutters whose work and skill were whose carving and style are of
highly sought after as can be seen stonemasons which are as yet
in the quantity and quality of the unknown. It is highly likely that their
headstones in Preban. Below is a list work is also on display in other local
of all the stone cutters whose work graveyards in County Wicklow and
we were able to identify between possible that one of their headstones
1738 and 1819. As all the headstones is signed and awaiting discovery. It is
are numbered you will be able to hoped that future surveys will enable
locate them on the accompanying us to identify and record the works
map in this booklet. They are of these highly skilled stone masons
discussed below by date range from which are vulnerable to the elements.
earliest to latest (1738-1819).