The Historic Graves Project

Community-led archaeological graveyard surveys

John TierneyEachtra Archaeological Projects Ltd.

December 2016john@eachtra.iet : 087 231 2107

Explore, Protect, Promote

2

WHO?

https://goo.gl/4njJSS

The RAMS in Action2 years - 11 graveyards1200 headstones

16

HOW?

Audio recorder

Zoom H2

GPS CameraSony HX20

Lenser P7

Historic Graveyards tend to have a common geography1.Church buildings usually have an east-west orientation2.Headstones usually face east (representing Jerusalem)3.Reuse of grave plots results in burial rows.4.In many graveyards the densest concentration of headstones is south of the church. The northern part of the graveyard is usually sparsely occupied.

The Geography of an Historic Graveyard

south

north

west east

Box tombHeadstone

Footstone

sidestone

sidestone

Every Historic Graveyard Survey builds a Graveyard Folder which contains 1.Grave Memorial Register2.Sketch Plan3.Thumbnail Contact Sheets (colour)4.Numerically filed record sheets

The Graveyard Folder

Register Sketch Plan Contact Sheets Record Sheets

2424

2525

Reading 1March the 25th 1826

Reading 2March the 2nd 1825

Reading 3Octobr the 5th 1825

First CuttingOctobr the 5th 1825

Final CuttingMarch the 2nd 1826

28

WHAT?

Count(y)Cork 131

Limerick 105Tipperary 48Waterford 32

Laois 208Offaly 7

Galway 12Westmeat

h 4Dublin 20Kildare 6

Kilkenny 57

3636

http://historicgraves.com/project/ballyhoura-peter-robinson-assisted-emigration-project

39

Summary

1. Community-led2. 1 geotagged photograph per

headstone3. Simple sketch plans

4. Paper archive5. Publish Immediately – fix as you

go

Kilbarry, Roscommon