Músaem na Míle Meánaoiseach, Cill Chainnigh
The Medieval Mile Museum sits right in the heart of Kilkenny’s historic city. On the grounds of the 13th-century St. Mary’s Church and graveyard, it’s among the finest medieval parish churches still standing in Ireland. Today, the beautifully restored building has a new life as a museum, bringing over 800 years of Kilkenny’s stories to life, from its civic and religious history to the everyday lives of its people. Inside, you’ll find fascinating exhibitions, including replicas of the famous High Crosses, rare archival records, and the city’s treasured artifacts.
At the centre of the museum's collection lies one of Ireland's most remarkable civic manuscripts, the Liber Primus Kilkenniensis. Known as Kilkenny's first town book, it records the proceedings of Kilkenny Corporation from 1231 to 1538 and provides a detailed window into the life, governance, and customs of a thriving medieval town. Bound in oak and written in Norman French, Latin, and English, the Liber Primus blends city records with chronicles of daily life. Its earliest entry, dated to the Feast of St Michael the Archangel in 1231, marks a foundational moment in Kilkenny's municipal identity, the annual election of a sovereign and four provosts, evidence of the borough's early self-governance and sophisticated legal culture.
The Liber also contains rich documentation of civic ordinances, including those regulating the price of bread and ale, street cleanliness, and feasting. From the 14th century onward, the manuscript increasingly functions as a systematic register, noting the names of elected officials, the admission of freemen, and significant public events. It records disputes over jurisdiction, court proceedings, and even death penalties issued by the town assembly, a reminder that civic authority was exercised with real power.
The Liber Primus was compiled over several centuries and includes transcriptions of even earlier documents, such as the charters granted by William Marshal, Earl of Pembroke, who in the early 13th century formally established Kilkenny as a borough. These charters, confirmed by later sovereigns, guaranteed privileges such as the Gilda Mercatoria (Merchant Gild), which regulated trade and protected local commerce. The gild's records, also found in the Liber, detail restrictions on non-gild members and the careful regulation of fairs and markets, revealing a town deeply embedded in the mercantile networks of medieval Ireland and England.
On display at the Medieval Mile Museum, the Liber Primus Kilkenniensis is more than a rare manuscript, it’s a vivid record of Kilkenny’s medieval life. Its pages capture the pride, politics, and community spirit that helped shape the city’s unique character, echoes of which can still be felt in its streets and stone walls today.
We gratefully acknowledge the digitisation and inclusion of this material on ISOS, which represents a most valuable step in enhancing its accessibility. Our thanks are due to Professor Pádraig Ó Macháin (University College Cork), Sharon Kavanagh (Curator, Medieval Mile Museum, Kilkenny), Kilkenny County Council, Anne Marie O’Brien and the School of Celtic Studies, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies.
Visit: Medieval Mile Museum
