This report is the full account of all the archaeological works carried out within the monastery and South Peak structures. It contains stratigraphic details with supporting plans, sections and photographs; a finds catalogue with descriptions and interpretations by relevant specialists; the raw data and results of palaeoenvironmental analyses and the osteoarchaeological analyses of human remains; a full account of the faunal remains; and the radiocarbon dates. The report concludes with an interim statement of the site’s significance. The purpose of this report is to make available the details of the archaeological works undertaken to date, in advance of the planned multidisciplinary publication programme.

The Bend of the Boyne, or Brú na Bóinne, has been an important ritual, social and economic centre for thousands of years. Internationally renowned for its elaborate Neolithic passage tombs, and containing the largest assemblage of megalithic art in Europe, its universal value was recognised in 1993 when it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Property, only one of three on the island of Ireland. In 2009 The Heritage Council, in collaboration with the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, published a research framework for Brú na Bóinne re-assessing key priorities and looking at where future research should be directed.

This Management Plan has been developed to protect and preserve Sceilg Mhichíl World Heritage Property (WHS), also known as Great Skellig. The plan addresses cultural and natural heritage issues in an integrated manner. It has been produced by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (DOEHLG), Ireland, in conjunction with the Office of Public Works (OPW), and has been developed in consultation with local interest groups, non-governmental organisations and other interested parties. The area covered by the plan is the island of Sceilg Mhichíl, with the exception of the lower (working) lighthouse and its curtilage and the helipad area and its adjacent store.

This document sets out the main objectives and policies of an integrated management plan for the Brú na Bóinne World Heritage Property. The area is also known as the Bend of the Boyne. The term of this plan is to be five years from the date of its adoption.