The Mint (Carlingford)

The Mint
Native name
Irish: An Mionta
Type Fortified house
Location Tholsel Street, Carlingford,
County Louth, Ireland
Coordinates 54°02′25″N 6°11′11″W / 54.040144°N 6.186272°W / 54.040144; -6.186272Coordinates: 54°02′25″N 6°11′11″W / 54.040144°N 6.186272°W / 54.040144; -6.186272
Area Cooley Peninsula
Built 15th/16th century
Owner State
Official name: The Mint
Reference no. 242
Location of The Mint in Ireland

The Mint is a fortified house and National Monument located in Carlingford, County Louth, Ireland.[1][2][3][4]

Location

The Mint is located in the southern part of Carlingford, 120 m (390 ft) southwest of Carlingford Lough.[5][6][7]

History

This castle, variously called a fortified house or tower house, derived its name from the license to mint coins granted to Carlingford in 1467 by Edward IV. However, the present tower comes from later, either the 15th or 16th century. It is believed to have housed one of Carlingford's wealthy merchant families (perhaps the Marmions[7]); however, the lack of a fireplace and the strength of the defences suggest that it may indeed have served as a mint. Against this is the fact that no coin minted at Carlingford has ever been found.[4][3]

Building

Ogee window

The Mint is three storeys high and made mainly of limestone. There is a battlemented chemin de ronde on the roof, with loopholes for muskets. A doorway is protected by machicolation.

The ground and first storey ogee windows (five in total) face onto the street, with carvings of a horse, a bust of a man, a bird, a snake and Celtic interlace ornament which reflects a revival of interest in Celtic art in the 15th–16th centuries. They also have hood mouldings and mullions.[8][9][10][11][12][13]

References

  1. ↑ "1430c - The Mint, Carlingford, Co. Louth - Architecture of Louth - Archiseek - Irish Architecture". 6 January 2010.
  2. ↑ http://www.louthheritage.ie/content/files/DraftCarlingfordTownWallsPlanComp.pdf
  3. 1 2 Davenport, Fionn (1 January 2008). "Ireland". Lonely Planet – via Google Books.
  4. 1 2 Ruding, Rogers (1 January 1840). "Annals of the coinage of Great Britain and its dependencies: from the earliest period of authentic history to the reign of Victoria". Hearne – via Google Books.
  5. ↑ Jackman, Neil. "History hotspot: Carlingford, Co Louth".
  6. ↑ Gerrard, David (1 January 2004). "The Hidden Places of Ireland". Travel Publishing Ltd – via Google Books.
  7. 1 2 Marmion, William F. K. (1 January 2002). "Irish knighthoods and related subjects: an anthology of published works". Irish Roots Cafe – via Google Books.
  8. ↑ "The Mint - Carlingford & Cooley Peninsula".
  9. ↑ Fraser, Ian. "carlingfordheritagecentre.com - History of Carlingford Heritage Centre".
  10. ↑ "The Mint Carlingford".
  11. ↑ "Medieval Carlingford - Irelands Eden".
  12. ↑ "The Mint Tower House".
  13. ↑ "The Mint, Carlingford".
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