Lych Gate, St. Patricks Church of Ireland, 260 Upper Malone Road, Dunmurry, Belfast, County Down, BT17 9LD

A lych gate erected 1878, located at the entrance to Drumbeg Parish Church, south of the Drum Bridge over the River Lagan. Pitched Rosemary tiled roofing, with ridge tiles and finials over gable apex, laid on exposed timber rafters on purlins, supported by a robust timber king post truss fixed to a vertical timber frame, braced and fixed to a oblong rounded foot stone. The timber structure encompasses the masonry arch and partially embedded into it. The walling is squared rubble sandstone with ashlar sandstone quoins and surrounds; high projected plinth rising to a moulded cornice level. Timber sheeted gates rising to the lock rail with arcaded opening with iron detailing above. The stiles have decorative mouldings at the top of the post with an inverted decorative iron arcade running over the length of the top rail. The principal elevation north and is symmetrically arranged. The equilateral pointed arch is inscribed with “In loving memory of John Ferguson Montgomery of Ballydrain died 1876. Erected by his sister Ellen Caldwell 1878”. The arch has two orders; chamfer stop detail; yellow and red sandstone voussoirs with a red sandstone label course over. The arch is flanked by two vertical timber posts supported by bracing, rising to the open roof structure. Long-and-short quoins of yellow and red sandstone with a chamfered plinth course. A pair of copper crosses inset from the clay finials over the apex of the gable ends. The right hand side finial is broken. The left elevation is symmetrically arranged with an open gable ended roof truss over the narrow masonry structure. The lower part of the masonry abuts the basalt random rubble wall. The rear elevation is identical to the front. The right elevation is identical to the left and abuts the basalt random rubble wall. Setting: The lych gate is located at the foot of a hill rising to the church and church yard. It is immediately adjacent to the bend of a busy road. To the left there is a post-box embedded into the masonry wall which abuts either side of the arch. The general setting is rural with the church acting as the backdrop. Roofing Rosem clay tile Walling Sandstone Windows N/A RWG N/A