Christ Church Cathedral

Close-up of Christ Church Cathedral 

On Friday I walked across the way to Christ Church Cathedral, constructed in the 12^th century.    It stands within the grounds of old medieval quarter and was built inside the formally walled city providing protection from invaders.   Saint Patrick’s Cathedral in contrast was constructed outside the wall, because the common person attended mass there and they would not have been able to pay the high tax required to live inside the wall to cover the cost of the guards and the continual maintenance.

 

Detail of the "Foxy friars" floor tiles

When the church became a priory the monks became very wealthy because it was a place of pilgrimage and they developed the nickname “The Foxy Friars”.  The photos of the floor to the left show just one of  tile arrangements depicting the foxy friars.  The fox’s carry water holders made from calf skin and staffs, just as pilgrims in the Middle Ages would have.  The floor tiles are copies made in the 18^th century and are based on the original 12^th century tiles.

                                        

Empty relic casket

The church had several relics in its possession including a crow’s ear given to Saint Patrick by Jesus, one thorn from the crown of thorns, a rock from the mountain where the tablet was given, and a speaking cross.  Pilgrims were typically charged high entrance fees to view theses relics, which were believed to have heavenly powers.  Despite the reformation the church was able to retain one relic, the heart of its founder Laurence O’Toole.  On the 3^rd of March 2012 the relic was stolen from the church during the hours of operation.  The casket that house the relic heart remains on the wall and they are hopeful that it will be returned.  Unfortunately four sacred relics have been stolen from Ireland this year.

When Henry the XIII broke from Rome during the English reformation Christ Cathedral became an Anglican church.  He suppressed all the monasteries and took all the money for himself.  In 1562 the church fell down, the left wall is still lean’s but is structurally sound and is the only original portion of the ground level church.  The church is known as the “Whisky Church” because in the 19^th century a wealthy distiller named Henry Roe spent 20 million Euros to completely restore the church, rendering him bankrupt.  He hired an English architect George Edmund Street to complete the project.  You can compare the difference in the left and right walls where the restoration took place.

Left side, the "leaning wall"

Right side, completely restored wall

The crypt

The crypt was in the center of the old medieval city and all of the old building were joined together underground.   There were also three taverns below the church as there was not enough space in the medieval town.  The names of the three taverns were Paradise, Hell, and Purgatory with “instant forgiveness” upstairs.  Today you can grab a bite to eat in the crypt at the Foxy Friars Coffee Shop.

Saint Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin, Ireland

St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin, Ireland

I am standing directly to the left of the green man

This afternoon I visited the St. Patrick’s Cathedral.  I took photos around the perimeter of the building prior to the tour lead by a lively docent named Rose. The height of the cathedral ceiling and walls was most impressive, as was the information provided by the tour guide.  I have noted a few interesting tidbits on the cathedral below.

St. Patrick was brought here to Ireland in 432 from Whales and sold into slavery North of Ireland where he tended sheep for seven years.  He escaped and returned to Whales and then became a priest in France.  Legend says that he heard the Irish people calling and he returned and baptized many people in Ireland.  Today you can see the well cover that St. Patrick used to baptize the people in Dublin.

Due to the moisture problems, caused by a river that runs directly below the cathedral, renderings had to be removed from the walls to allow the stone to dry out.  They expect to replace them six months from their removal date.  The stained glass that allows light to spill onto the interior of the cathedral is not original to the 12^th century building, and was replaced later in the.

St. Patrick’s in Dublin is the only Cathedral in Ireland to have a “green man” adorning it pillars.  The “green man” motif can be found on the pillars of both secular and ecclesiastical medieval buildings.  This type of decoration is either surrounded by or created from leaves, from which branches or other vegetation may sprout.  These ornamentations related to natural vegetation deities and were associated with rebirth, representing the cycle of growth each spring. I was the only one in the tour group who was familiar with the “green man” motifs thanks to my college education in Wisconsin!

Detail of the green man, on center pillar

Archaeological research excavation of Rathnadrinna Fort in Cashel

                                          Corn drying kiln

On Tuesday night I stayed at the Cashel Lodge, owned and operated by Tom and Brid O’Brien.  After telling Tom about my Middle Ages FFT Fellowship he suggested that I attend a lecture by Rose Cleary on the archeological excavations on Burncourt Castle in Co. Tipperary. He also informed me that there was an archeological excavation happening in Cashel and that I should introduce myself to Joanne and Richard O’Brien and ask if I could visit the site.  This excavation is being fund by a grant from the Royal Irish Academy and the work is being carried out by volunteers from around the world over the next few summers.  This is one of the larger forts that has been uncovered measuring 80 meters internally in diameter, where the typical site in this area has measured 40 meters in diameter.  There are 25 meters of banks and ditches as well.  Most ditches in the area had “ankle breakers” dug in the bottom of the ditch, that an enemy would get their foot caught in and presumably halting further progress of their attack.   Thus far they have discovered several ditches and a corn drying kiln used for drying grain, possibly dating from the 8^th and 9^th century.  A piece of iron was found inside the kiln, which they will be able to test; this artifact may become a composite artifact. They hope to find cereal grains to help give an accurate date which could help date the whole fort or at least a portion of the site.  One of the volunteers named Dez asked if I had any knowledge in using the modern day shovel, the photo below shows my minuscule contribution to the Cashel excavation. 

Find out more about Rathnadrinna

The Rock of Cashel

On Tuesday I ventured out of Dublin to a small town called Cashel which is home to the Rock of Cashel.  For years the rock had been the seat of the Kings of Munster, until 1101 when Muircheartach Ua Briain gave the land to the church to boost his standing with the church and keep his enemies from seizing this prized location.  The above photo shows me standing in front of the Round Tower and Cathedral from the north east side of the Rock.

On Monday June 25 I met with a Dublin Ambassador named Brona who helped me get orientated to the city. She is a retired language teacher so we were able to discuss the education systems of our two countries.  We went to the pub to talk for a while and then we took a brief walk around the Temple Bar area of town where the hostel I am staying at is located.

The Flight to Dublin

The fund for teachers bag also makes a great pillow cover for overnight flights!

5 more days until my Middle Ages adventure in Europe

Lords & Ladies come and join me for an adventure exploring the Middle Ages.