Kilkenny Limestone: Authentic Irish Blue Limestone
Kilkenny Limestone is an Irish blue limestone quarried in Co. Carlow and Co. Kilkenny. Formed 340 million years ago, this dense, fine-grained stone has been specified for Irish and British architecture since Neolithic times, and today supplies landmark projects from the Department of Finance in Dublin to Foster + Partners' MoreLondon on the Thames. Used for paving, cladding, patios, flooring and pool copings, Kilkenny Limestone performs reliably indoors and outdoors in the Irish and British climate.
Patio slabs - stonewashed
Bespoke Paving and Patio slabs
Kilkenny Limestone is a hard-wearing choice for landscaped gardens, patios and driveways in the Irish and British climate. The stone pairs well with brickwork, timber decking and planted borders, and is available in a range of finishes to suit different garden styles: flamed slabs for contemporary designs, stonewashed random lengths for a weathered look, and honed or hand-cleft setts for traditional landscaping. Explore all finishes and formats to see how Kilkenny Limestone performs in your project.
Paving setts - tumbled
Kilkenny Limestone is used for paving, cladding, wall capping, retaining walls and garden pathways across Ireland and the UK. Its blue-grey tones and dense composition make it a reliable choice for outdoor projects exposed to frost, rain and foot traffic, and it holds its character over decades of use.
For projects with a more traditional or rural character, the tumbled paving line offers Kilkenny Limestone cobbles with softened edges and a worked surface. At 5 cm thick and in smaller formats, they suit driveways, garden paths and courtyard designs where a weathered, hand-laid appearance is preferred.
Find inspiration in our project gallery featuring Kilkenny Limestone paving, pool copings and garden details:
Patio slabs - stonewashed
Pond copings and centre strips - diamond cut and flamed
Paving setts - honed and hand cleft
Planters
Patio slabs - flamewashed
Wall capping
Patio slabs - flamed
Patio slabs - bush hammered
Pool copings - flamed
Patio slabs
Patio slabs - Fossil stone
Patio slabs - Fossil stone
Pool copings - Fossil stone
Patio slabs - Fossil stone
Patio slabs - stonewashed
Bespoke Paving and Patio slabs
Kilkenny Limestone is a hard-wearing choice for landscaped gardens, patios and driveways in the Irish and British climate. The stone pairs well with brickwork, timber decking and planted borders, and is available in a range of finishes to suit different garden styles: flamed slabs for contemporary designs, stonewashed random lengths for a weathered look, and honed or hand-cleft setts for traditional landscaping. Explore all finishes and formats to see how Kilkenny Limestone performs in your project.
Paving setts - tumbled
Kilkenny Limestone is used for paving, cladding, wall capping, retaining walls and garden pathways across Ireland and the UK. Its blue-grey tones and dense composition make it a reliable choice for outdoor projects exposed to frost, rain and foot traffic, and it holds its character over decades of use.
For projects with a more traditional or rural character, the tumbled paving line offers Kilkenny Limestone cobbles with softened edges and a worked surface. At 5 cm thick and in smaller formats, they suit driveways, garden paths and courtyard designs where a weathered, hand-laid appearance is preferred.
Find inspiration in our project gallery featuring Kilkenny Limestone paving, pool copings and garden details:
Patio slabs - stonewashed
Pond copings and centre strips - diamond cut and flamed
Paving setts - honed and hand cleft
Planters
Patio slabs - flamewashed
Wall capping
Patio slabs - flamed
Patio slabs - bush hammered
Pool copings - flamed
Patio slabs
Patio slabs - Fossil stone
Patio slabs - Fossil stone
Pool copings - Fossil stone
Patio slabs - Fossil stone
Quality Assurance and Certifications
Kilkenny Limestone products carry CE marking under the relevant European standards for natural stone, including EN 1341 (paving slabs), EN 1342 (setts), EN 1343 (kerbs) and EN 12057/12058 (modular and floor/stair tiles), and are manufactured under an ISO 9001 quality management system. Quarrying is certified under ISO 14001:2015 for environmental management.
Extracted With Respect For Nature
Kilkenny Limestone holds ISO 14001:2015 certification for environmental management, covering the long-term impact of our quarrying, production and supply operations. Our ZeroWaste programme aims to eliminate waste from every stage of manufacturing, treating Irish blue limestone as a finite resource and making use of by-products wherever possible. Read more about our environmental approach.
A Finish For Every Project
Kilkenny Limestone is available in +20 finishes, ranging from flamed and stonewashed to honed, bush hammered and hand-cleft. Each finish brings out a different aspect of the stone's grain, colour and slip resistance, allowing architects and landscape designers to match the surface to the project, whether indoor or outdoor, contemporary or heritage.
Get inspired
Our Quarries in Ireland
Our three quarries at Old Leighlin in Co. Carlow, and Kellymount and Holdensrath in Co. Kilkenny, produce Kilkenny Limestone in two varieties: classic blue and fossil. Both are used for indoor and outdoor applications and are supplied to projects across Ireland, the UK and further afield.
Old Leighlin Quarry
Holdensrath Quarry
Kellymount Quarry
Kilkenny Limestone's reserves at Old Leighlin, Kellymount and Holdensrath hold approximately 3 million cubic metres of blue limestone. We quarry around 75,000 m³ per year for processing into slabs, tiles, paving, cladding and bespoke architectural elements.
Frequently Asked Questions
Kilkenny Limestone is a dense, fine-grained Irish blue limestone quarried in Co. Carlow and Co. Kilkenny. It formed around 340 million years ago during the Carboniferous period and is petrographically classified as a bioclastic grainstone. It is used for paving, cladding, building products, interior flooring, worktops and urban infrastructure, and is available in more than 20 finishes.
Kilkenny Limestone (Irish blue limestone) and Belgian bluestone share the same geological origin. Both are bioclastic grainstones formed during the Carboniferous period and have comparable technical performance, including density, frost resistance and compressive strength. The main differences are visual. Kilkenny Limestone tends toward a deeper, more uniform blue tone with fewer visible fossils, while Belgian bluestone carries a slightly warmer grey with a higher fossil content. Specification decisions typically come down to aesthetic preference and project context.
Our History
Kilkenny Limestone Quarries builds on centuries of Irish stone craft, from the Celtic crosses of early monasteries to the civic and commercial buildings of modern Dublin and London. Our entire blue limestone range is quarried and produced at our facilities in Co. Carlow and Co. Kilkenny under a rigorous quality system, with traceability from quarry to finished product.
1930
First quarry
John Sisk & Son acquired an Irish blue limestone quarry near Ballinasloe, Co. Galway, responding to growing demand for native Irish stone in the building projects of the young Irish state.
1950
Old Leighlin
As the reserves at the Ballinasloe site were used for the construction of Galway Cathedral, the company expanded with two new quarries at Ballybrew, Co. Wicklow and Old Leighlin, Co. Carlow.
1970
Cladding & paving
The 1970s marked a shift in how Kilkenny Limestone was manufactured and marketed, with a move away from purely ornamental uses. We began developing more practical applications, such as cladding and paving. A notable example is the Met Éireann Headquarters at Glasnevin, Dublin, with its angled façade of blue limestone cladding.
1980
New export channels
During Ireland's economic downturn, Kilkenny Limestone developed new export channels for blue limestone, building a strong reputation in the Dutch and Belgian markets. A Belgian subsidiary allowed us to expand our presence across mainland Europe.
1990
Iconic buildings
Kilkenny Limestone expanded its presence in the UK and Irish markets over this period, supplying landmark projects including Foster + Partners' MoreLondon development on the Thames, the Department of Finance in Dublin, the Lewis Glucksman Gallery in Cork, and the Offaly County Council Civic Offices.
2011
Brachot Family Member
In 2011, the three quarries at Old Leighlin (Co. Carlow), Kellymount and Holdensrath (Co. Kilkenny) were unified under one name, Kilkenny Limestone, as part of the Belgian Brachot Group.
In the warm, shallow, tropical seas that once extended across much of what we know today as north-east Europe, sea life and calcium carbonate crystallised over time to form the sedimentary rock with its characteristic coral strata, crinoid, brachiopod and gastropod fossils. There it remained for hundreds of millions of years until Europe’s settlers began to conceive of building robust and timeless structures. The story of this material tracks the development of civilisation in Ireland. Blue limestone was used by the Neolithic people to construct monuments in a time before the Pyramids of Egypt were first imagined.
