The remains of a monastery founded here at Drumcliff in the sixth century by St. Colmcille, includes the stump of a round tower on one side of the road, and two sandstone High Crosses standing in a graveyard on the other side, together with fragments of a third now in the National Museum of Dublin.
The most important of these crosses, known as the Drumcliff Cross, is 12.5 feet high and is a short distance from the grave of W. B. Yeats. On the cross, Adam and Eve are at the bottom of the shaft with a lovely knotwork representation of the Tree of Life. Further up is a scene of Cain slaying his brother Abel. The prancing lion in high relief is a majestic symbolization of Christ. Just below the crosshead is a scene of the miracle of Daniel safe in the lion's den. The figure in the centre of the crosshead represents Jesus Christ in his glory in heaven.