Skeletons Unearthed on Hill Top (Leinster Leader, 1961)

Leinster Leader August 12, 1961

Skeletons Unearthed on Hill Top

Twelve skeletons, believed to be those of unusually tall males, have been unearthed in a field two miles from Athy – the remains of people who died very many years ago. The skeletons, buried only 15 to 17 inches deep, were found when Kildare County Council workmen were excavating for a new carriageway which is being constructed for a distance of 400 yards to realign the Athy-Carlow road. The name of the townland in which the discovery was made is Abbeylands.
A curious feature of the discovery was that the skeletons lay four in a row, and all except one faced west. The exception was one which lay with the feet pointing east. All the bones of the skeletons appeared to be intact, and each skeleton had all its teeth.
How the skeletons came to be where they were is anybody’s guess. Local history contains no record of a battle there. Nearby, however, was an abbey which was pillaged by Cromwell’s forces. All the skeletons were carefully and reverently placed in a big coffin and buried in St. Michael’s Cemetery, Athy.