Parish mystified by the return of ancient chalice

Culmullen parish had an early Christmas present when a 200 year-old chalice mysteriously arrived back on the doorstep of the local parish church early one morning. The precious piece of silverware had been recorded in diocesan records in the 1930s, but it is uncertain when it went missing from St Martin's Church in Culmullen. Retired parish priest of Dunshaughlin and Culmullen, Fr John Kerrane, who now lives in Culmullen, doesn't recollect the chalice being in the parish during his tenure, from 1989. The cup and an accompanying paten was left sitting on the step of the church, wrapped in bubble wrap and a brown paper envelope, early one morning. It was discovered by Oliver Walsh, husband of sacristan, Lena, as he opened the church at 7.10 in the morning for morning Mass. The envelope was marked 'Culmullen Chapel'. It hadn't been there when he locked up the evening before and was still dry so hadn't been too long there that morning. The chalice is inscribed 'The gift of the parishioners of Cultrummer 1794'. Cultrummer is a townland in Drumree and was the site of a previous church. Diocesan historian Fr John Brady, who published histories of the parishes in the early part of the last century, said that when active persecution of Catholics ceased, a mud-wall chapel was erected at Cultrummer. An L-shaped building indicates the site on Larkin's map of 1812. In local tradition, the site is still pointed out as 'the chapel field'. There is a record of ordinations at Cultrummer in 1761 and it is not unlikely that they were held in this chapel, Fr Brady wrote. It lasted until after Catholic Emancipation, when it was replaced by another built at the meeting of the four roads called the 'Pound of Culmullen'. This chapel lasted about 40 years until the present St Martin's Church was built around 1878. The chalice must have been present in Culmullen when Fr Brady was recording his history of the parishes in the 1930s. Between 1937 and 1945, Fr Brady produced 15 pamphlets, each containing the history of two, three or four parishes. The histories contained details of churches, schools and priests who had served in parishes and were brought up to date by Bishop Michael Smith in 1993. Culmullen Church underwent a restoration and renovation in 1989 and it is possible that, at this stage, the chalice was put into safekeeping with somebody in the parish and may have only came to light recently. Whatever the story behind it, its return to St Martin's Church remains a mystery.