"The stonework of the church was valuable and was seized upon as a ready-made quarry by neighbouring villages. The dust blew along the street and the rain washed down the earth. Weeds and grass grew among the houses and eventually over them. The square corners and sharp sides of stonework have been blurred with a covering of soil and turf" (from Pearson, M., 2006, In Comes I, Performance, Memory and Landscape).

Mind your step, Varian Family get-together, September 2007, Coachford Church of Ireland (picture: Kieran McCarthy)

Kilblaffer Church and graveyard is a place of antiquity. It survives in the landscape, a reminder of our past, of how life changes and how time continuously moves on. The site is eroded by ivy and trees as nature takes back the site, turning the site into a type of semi wilderness. The window of the old church at Kilblaffer has stayed in my mind. One can see the limestone architecture but the branches of the trees entangles itself around the opening, slowly tearing apart the late medieval structure.

Arising out of recent research, Cork County Council acknowledges that the County's churches and graveyards of antiquity are of significant, archaeological, architectural, historical and cultural interest and an increased awareness and understanding of the various attributes that make up these resources, is fundamental to the overall success of their preservation.

During 2006-2007, Bernard O'Mahony completed two studies for the Historic Monuments Advisory Committee on behalf of Cork County Council. He surveyed ruined eighteenth century and early nineteenth century churches in County Cork and also completed a Condition Survey of Historic Graveyards in the Carrigaline and Glanmire. He identified numerous areas of concern in conservation management. What I wish to present in this article are a small number of recommendations reached by Bernard.

In the structures surveyed long-term destruction of the fabric of churches continue by the unchecked growth of vegetation inside and on the walls of churches has been found to impact on almost all churches. Likewise, the absence of a roof and the consequential decay of render, removal of mortar from joints and the loosening of stone-work on the tops of wails is common to all structures that Bernard surveyed. It is noted that conservation work should be applied where the irreversible loss of historic fabric is expected and where threats to the safety of users of associated surrounding graveyards are a consideration (O'Mahony, 2007).

The conservation of sub-surface deposits in a graveyard is of fundamental importance. All archaeological deposits including burials and potential church foundations should be preserved in situ i.e. remain undisturbed. No digging can be done on any archaeologically sensitive site except by a qualified archaeologist with permission from the landowner and the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. It is also a legal obligation for any objects found during a graveyard clean-up scheme to be reported to the National Monuments Section of the Government Departments and also the Director of the National Museum of Ireland (O'Mahony, 2007).

Communities considering conservation work should consult the County Archaeologist for advice and guidance. Bernard discovered that graveyards that have the appearance of being neglected for a period are most under threat from possible vandalism and misuse. The lack of guardianship of any graveyard, visible in the unchecked growth of vegetation, is an encouragement to vandalise or undertake unauthorised burial or works.

The core aim of carrying out conservation works to any structure are to bring under control the process of decay without damaging the character of a structure or altering the fabric and features which make the structure of special interest to the overall cultural heritage resource. Any works should be carried out using traditional methods and materials appropriate to the structure, its history and condition. Where it is necessary to replace part of a structure, an exact match should be sought on a like-for-like basis. There are many factors in force that cause erosion and decay of graveyard features, which are both natural and man-made. The natural causes of decay include climate, flaura and fauna. The man-made causes of decay include acid rain, vandalism, lack of conservation methods and poor conservation methods (O'Mahony, 2006).