Kilkenny day trip and a River Dance

I took a quick day trip to Kilkenny on Tuesday to visit the famous Medieval town.  On the bus I met a lady who was visiting her sister for the day and she walked into the town center with me and pointed me in the direction of the castle and recommended a great local restaurant where I had a delicious lunch.  I started my time off in Kilkenny by taking a tour of the historic site with one of the local guides.  The tourism information center is housed in a Medieval building that is still owned by the Sheehan family.  The tour guide pointed out several fossils that were in the stones of the tourism building, which she said we would see throughout the town.  A few of the highlights of our tour were the Black Abbey monastery (no longer in use), the Saint Canice Cathedral, the KilkennyCastle, and the Black Abbey Road. 

Closeup of the Black Abbey Monastery

Black Abbey Road

Closeup of a fossil on the Kilkenny Visitor Center

Saint Canice Cathedral

At the cathedral I climbed the tower, which was pretty much straight up and down with very little wiggle room for backpacks.  I was able to take several photos of the town from all directions at the tower top.  I was able to tour the inside of the castle, most of which was renovated at various periods and did not reflect the Middle Ages in the interior.  The exterior of the castle was outstanding, as were the gardens surrounding the castle.

View of Kilkenny from the St. Canice Tower

Kilkenny Castle

A photo of me at Kilkenny Castle

I made it back to Dublin just in time to literally run to my hostel, change my clothing, and walk quickly to the theater to catch a production of River Dance.  Having only viewed the Big Top Chautauqua's spoof on River Dance, titled River Pants, it was grand to see the real deal.

Back on the Irish Isle

I am back in Ireland and I will be going to Kilkenny tomorrow for a day trip, more to come.....

Victoria & Albert Museum

I arrived in London today by train and after dropping my bags off at my incredibly nice hostel I hopped back onto the tube to the Victoria and Albert Museum.  The museum has a great collection of Medieval artifacts, not to mention their extensive decorative arts collection.

 The screen I am standing in front of was a rare screen to find in the Middle Ages and may have shielded the tomb of Richard de Wych, the Bishop of Chichester from 1245 to 1253.  The screen was originally painted red with gilded, but I think that I prefer it in black!  The Bishops followers believed that he performed miracles beyond the grave.

Two of my favorite reliquaries  from the V & A Museum.  The bust once contained a portion of a head a Bishop saint named Antiguis.  Many time the reliquaries were designed to take the shape of the body part that they held, like the hand below.  The relic parts of the hand would have been visible through the fingers, but have been lost.

 

Puces St. Ouen

This morning I went to the Puces St. Ouen, at Porte de Clignancourt to experience this enormous flea market.  Puce is French for "flea."  Flea Markets started in the Middle Ages when peasants purchased the old, flea-infested clothing and other discarded possessions of the wealthy.  The market space was created in the 1800's when the city wall was demolished. . Ouen is a suburb of Paris, but it is unlike the "burbs" we are accustomed to as this is where the poorer people leave, with the wealthy people living as close to the city center as possible.  Most of the 2,000 vendors sell antiques, but at high prices.  I ate at Chez Louisette, which is located in the heart of the market.  I had mussels in cream sauce for my lunch and creme burlee for desert, while listening to several different people sing along with the key board and accordion.  I did not take my camera along to the market, because of the tight spaces and prevalent pickpockets.

This afternoon I went over to river street vendors near Notre Dame Cathedral to buy a another painting from an artist who told me he is the best artist in France.  It was nice to find an artist who actually paints the art and is not simply selling prints of the original to unknowing tourists. Above is a picture taken earlier this week of one of the many bridges containing "love locks.", read the linked article for further information.

Chartres, France

West Facade, exterior (Royal Portal)

West Facade, interior (Royal Portal)

 On Thursday I ventured to Chartres (Shar-truh) to visit the famed Gothic Cathedral, Cathedrale Notre-Dame de Chartres, and to take a tour lead by English scholar Malcolm Miller, who has been studying the cathedral and sharing his knowledge through lecture tours for over half a century. The tour started in the royal portal where Malcolm 'read' us the stories in the glass windows located between the two towers.  What is most outstanding about this cathedral, the fourth recorded on this location, is that it was constructed in 66 years.  Many of the children that watched the church burn in 1194, helped rebuild the cathedral and also attended the dedication in 1260.  The church had been a important shrine for pilgrims to visit because it housed the torn veil or tunic (birthing gown) that was supposedly worn by the Virgin at Christ's birth.  The church had acquired the relic as a gift from Charles the Bald, the grandson of Charlemagne. It was believed that the saints interceded through their earthly relics.  What lead to the church being rebuilt so rapidly was the fact that after the ashes has cooled the veil was found in the crypt unharmed and it was taken as a sign that 'Our Lady' wanted a new church built on this location.  Recent dating of the garment and the weaving technique date the cloth to the first century A.D.

I also took a separate crypt tour with a guide named Annie, who had one of the English ladies translate what she was saying so that those of us who do not speak French were able to gain more knowledge about the building and artifacts. 

12th century mural in Fulbert's crypt

Crypt

I dinned at Le Serpente where I enjoyed soupe de legumes and mouse de chocolate, where the interior is covered by a large collection of tea pots.  I spent the night at Hotellerie Saint Ives, located behind the cathedral.  The building is a renovated monastery  with Meditative garden areas, which were unfortunately closed due to all the rain.  From my window I could view a garden version of a labyrinth.

Hallway of Hotellerie Saint Ives

Hotellerie Saint Ives garden

Labyrinth

This morning I returned to the Chartres Cathedral because they remove the chairs in order for pilgrims and tourists to view and walk the labyrinth, which is the largest surviving labyrinth from the Middle Ages dating from c.1200.  Many were destroyed in the 17th and 18th centuries because the purpose was no longer understood even by the clergy.  Modern day pilgrims still walk to Chartres from Paris, yesterday Malcolm told us of a group on a recent pilgrimage that said they could see the towers of the Cathedral for two days before their arrival on foot.  Traditionally the pilgrims would start by crawling in the church from the west, continuing on bended knee while meditating until they reached the center where it was thought they would meet God.

I also visited the Centre International du Vitrail (International Stained-Glass Centre) which house a permanent exhibition explaining the cathedral's stained-glass windows.  They had a really nice guide in English that explained all of the glass from Chartres.  Currently downstairs in the Loens Gothic cellar, c. 1200, is a outstanding display of contemporary stained-glass pieces.

Musee de Cluny & Musee du Louvre

Courtyard at Musee de Cluny, with gargoyles

 This morning I went to Musee de Cluny - The National Museum of the Middle Ages which houses the collection that was started by Alexandre Du Sommerard (1779-1842).  The buildings that the artifacts are located in are pieces of art themselves.  The first building is the only Gallo-Roman monument surviving in Paris, the "northern thermal baths' of Lutetia.  The second building is the Hotel de Cluny, built in the late 15th century, was the first example of a Parisian private mansion . Flamboyant Gothic style can be seen in the facades of the courtyard and chapel.  This morning the gargoyles in the court yard were still dripping rain from their mouths.  The Musee de Cluny is the home of the noted Lady and the Unicorn tapestries, which were purchased in 1882.

Manuscript from the collection of the Louvre

In the afternoon I viewed the objects from the Middle Ages and the Medieval structure that are part of the immense Musee du Louve collection.  I was able to bypass the long ticket lines with my museum pass, after waiting in the long security line.  One of my favorite pieces in the Middle Ages collection was a richly adorned manuscript.

Sainte-Chapelle and Notre-Dame Cathedral

View of the windows above the alter in the upper chapel of Sainte-Chapelle

Today I visited two of Paris's most notable churches, constructed in the Middle Ages.  My first stop was Sainte-Chapelle which is noted for it's stained glass windows, which let an amazing amount of light in to illuminate the painted chapel walls.  A photograph cannot capture how both the lower and upper chapels glow with the large application of gold leaf set against the painted blue walls.  At this very moment Sainte Chapelle is undergoing a large restoration project on the windows in the upper chapel, the workers are working to the left of the alter in the photograph.  They will try to keep as much of the original leading as possible during the process.  During the rein of Louie IX he made Paris become a "New Jerusalem" with the purchase of the Holy Relics, which had belonged to the emperors of Constantinople since the 4th century.

A photo of me in the upper chapel

Ceiling of the lower chapel

After a cup of chocolat chard (hot chocolate) and a crepe filled with chocolat and coconut I ventured on to the next Gothic structure, Notre-Dame Cathedral.  Nortre-Dame is known for it's unique gargoyles and chimeras which cover the exterior of the building. The true function of a gargoyle was to take water away from the building, and they are so named because of the noise the water would make as it passed through the carved structure.  Chimeras or grotesques on the other hand were mythical creatures that were used solely for decorative purposes.  I climbed the tower in order to view the chimera gallery at close proximity, it was amazing to feel the stone that was was expertly carved in 12th and 13th centuries.

This chimera still watches over the city of Paris

One of the famed gargoyles of Notre-Dame

Cite de l'Architecture et du Patrimoine: Museum at Trocadero & La Tour Eiffel

It looks like the real thing but it only a cast!

Today I spent most of the day a the  Cite de l'Architecture et du Patrimoine: Museum at Trocadero, viewing expertly crafted casts from an assortment of buildings constructed in both the Romanesque and Gothic styles.  The casts were taken in the mid-19th century architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc and his architecture students.  Viollet-le-Duc saw a need restore and preserve Paris's rich architectural history.  In total they took more than 125 casts of important detail work as well as massive sculpture pieces.  They casts were preserved used to make the pieces that are now on display in the museum today.  The picture to the right shows a detail of Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Chartres, which I will visit in person later this week.  Below is one more of my favorite casts from the Cite de l'Architecture et du Patrimoine.

 Eglise collégiale Saint-Maxe, Bar-le-Duc, Meuse.

La Tour Eiffel

It would not be a real visit to Paris without a trip to the famed "Eiffel Tower" so I  ate a sandwich and drank a smoothie in the shadow of La Tour Eiffel.  After I finished my lunch I walked the banks of the river and snapped photographs of the surrounding area.

I have arrived in Paris

A view from my hotel window

This afternoon I left London taking a train from St. Pancras train Station and I arrived at Paris Nord train station.  On the ride to Paris I chatted with three ladies that live near Sanabil Florida, two of the women are teachers and one is a nurse.  I had a dinner of sesame crusted salmon and vegetables at Au Reue Bistrot.  Tomorrow I will start to explore the art and architecture of Paris.

St. Pauls, The Tower of London, and Portobello Road

A view from the dome of St. Paul's

This morning I took an audio guided tour of St. Paul's Cathedral, which has had a church on the site since 604.  The great fire of 1666 incinerated the previous building.   Christopher Wren, who had been asked to refurbish the previous church, spent the next 40 years carrying out his vision for the church as well as the surrounding area in London.  I climbed the 530 steps up to the dome, which did offer great views of the city of London.

White Tower, Tower of London

I was able to take a fantastic guided tour of the Tower of London this afternoon, where I was able to walk the grounds and buildings in addition to learning more about the English history at the towers.  Many of the pieces of armor worn by England's past kings and princes is housed in the White Tower Museum.  I created a token of my visit to the London Tower by running a pence through a machine, an impression of a raven was impressed to the surface.  This common tourist item is accessible all over the world and kind of like our own modern day pilgrim badge, telling the people back home that we have been to the said location and all is well.

A photo of me in the White Tower

Animal Sculptures at the Tower of London

 Throughout the grounds of the Tower of London there were several animal sculptures as the English used to keep exotic animals on the grounds including an elephant and a polar bear that were gifted to them.  Later the animals were moved to the zoo.  Today the only live animals that are kept on the premises are 8 ravens.




Finally, at the end of the day I walked the markets of Portobello road, which reminded me of  one of my favorite movies, Bedknobs and Broomsticks.  There truly are trinkets to interest a diverse good of people, as well as tasty food booths.

British Museum and the British Library

On Friday I went to the British Library and the British museum to view the various artifacts that the two institutions have on display.   At the British Library I was able to view an array of illuminated manuscripts from Europe, Persia, Turkey, China, Japan, and India.  The collection contained several copies of the Book of Hours, which was known as a "Medieval best seller."  The books consists of a sequence of 8 short services intended to be recited in private at different intervals during each day.  These books were often highly personalized and painted with the interests of the owner. There was also a interactive display about the 1215 Magna Carta including a copy of the document.

Sir John Langston Brass, 1506

During my visit to the British Museum I was able to look at the Middle Ages collection.  I took a photograph of a brass that depicts Sir John Langston as a knight, many people chose to have a memorial brass commemorate the dead in place of expensive tomb effigies.  This brass is similar to the replicas that I created rubbings of at St. Martin's in the fields.  The Middle Ages collection also included game pieces from several games including a well preserved game of chess that the traditional red and white board with hand carved game pieces.  Chess was played to sharpen the senses knights and was seen as one of seven knightly accomplishments.  It was also played by men and women and came to be associated with flirtation.

Day trip to Cambrige

Exterior of King's Chapel Cambridge College

I took a train to Cambridge on Thursday in order to visit King's Chapel, where you are more likely to be run over by a bike than a car when the colleges are in session.  I took a two hour tour with a local guide named Rosalyn, who has been leading tours of  Cambridge for the last twenty two years.  She pointed out many of the structures from the Middle Ages and provided interesting commentary on the history of Cambridge.

St. Benedict's Church constructed in the 1500's has the oldest building in Cambridge, a bell tower c. 1027, attached to it.  They still use the bell tower to call people to church, the bells are rung from the ground floor.

The people would gather together in the ante chapel prior to the service, it is here that the carving is most elaborate.  It is a rather large ante chapel, where people would have originally stood.  The windows were put in during various stages in the 1500's.  All the glass was removed during the second world war, with the exception of the west window.  The wooden organ screen, that separates the west and east portions of the chapel, was carved in during Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn's brief three year marriage (1553-1556).

Fan vault ceiling inside King's Chapel

In England the building of cathedrals, chapels, and churches were started at the east end with the west end being completed much later.  The choir and alter are located in the east end.  Originally exquisite ceilings like this would have been painted, however due to fighting wars they ran out of funding.  While this English Perpendicular fan ceiling is not the oldest example in the country but it is the largest (80 feet or 23 1/2 meters), created in 1512-1515.  

String course in the ante chapel

The one of the stone carvers felt that he did such a superb job carving the walls of the chapel that he put a self portrait of himself in the string course, a little row of flowers.  (located to the far left above the arch)  
















 In the great gate of Trinity College Cambridge there is a statue that depicts Henry VIII, who had the original sculpture of Edward III removed five weeks prior to his death.  His left hand once held a scepter, but it now holds a wooden chair leg which was placed there by college students playing pranks once they have completed their final exams.  In the past they have inserted other objects including a bicycle pump and a "lavatory brush".  The college now leaves the wooden chair leg.

Trinity College great gate, Cambridge

Today you cannot see in or out many of the structures of the Middle Ages as many of the windows were cemented in to save money, when taxes in the 17th and 18th century were calculated by the number of windows that a building contained.

St. Martin's in the Field and the National Gallery

Working diligently on my brass rubbings in the

On Wednesday I took the tube over to St. Martin's in the fields, known as "the church of the ever open door."  They provide food, council, and a welcoming space to the homeless people of the city.  All that remains of the original building is the crypts below the current building which was completed in 1726 and designed by James Gibbs.  The bodies were cleared out of the crypts and today the crypts house a cafe.  During my visit I created two rubbings from the churches collection of replica brasses.  The rubbings are created using a speciality paper and metallic brasses. 

One of my brass rubbings in progress

After I completed my brass rubbings I walked over to the National Gallery to view their collection of paintings of the Middle Ages dating from 1250-1500.  I found the audio tour helpful as I viewed this large collection of work.

House of Parliment & the London Eye

Since I was unable to secure a ticket for the Houses of Parliament after my tours of Westminster Abbey and St. Margaret’s Church, I walked over to the London Eye to take aerial view photographs of the city. Below are photos of the Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, and St. Margaret’s Church, as viewed from the London Eye.



London Eye



Houses of Parliament, located just behind bridge

Westminster Abbey and St. Margarets Church

Westminster Abbey, exterior view of the rose window

Today I visited Westminster Abbey and St. Margarets Church, where I learned even more about Middle Ages architecture and art.  Vicar Ben, who lead the guided tour informed us that St. Margaret's church was later built because the Abbey was beginning to look like a market place with the common people bringing in their goods and animals in some cases.  The original floor plan did not have seating and seating for wealthy people came later. Our tour group was allowed to sit in the seats where the choir sits during part of our tour and were were able to get a closer look a some of the effigies of the cathedral.  Photography is prohibited in both of the building but I was able to find an unexpected way around that in St. Margaret's, as I was asked to pose for a photograph that may later be used in their brochure.  I said that I would be more than happy to pose for their photograph as long as they took a photo of me with my camera afterwards.

Not the world's most stunning photo, but a photo in the church nonetheless!

Christ Church Cathedral Choral Evensong

Christ Church Cathedral, interior

I attended a Choral Evensong service at Christ Church on Sunday; the acoustics and choir voices were outstanding.  The Cathedral considers the Choral Evensong a reflection that allows God to speak through the people. 

Museum of Archaeology

On Sunday I visited the Museum of Archaeology which has a grand collection of objects from the Middle Ages.  One of my favorite portions of the exhibit was the collection of shrines. Shrines were an important part of Middle Ages life and people were encouraged to make pilgrimages to the shrines as a way to make atonement for their earthly sins and as a means to earn their way into an eternal life in the next world.  People also visited shrines in hopes of being healed from various ailments.  Many times shrines, like the one photographed below, contained idols, relics, or other objects that were associated with specific saints.  In addition to the collection of Middle Ages artifacts the museum also houses an excellent exhibit on the Vikings; many of the objects were excavated here in Dublin.

 This decorative shrine was constructed to contain an 8th-century Mass book.  It was considered a relic of St. Maelruain, the patron saint of Lorrha in County Tipperary.  In 1370 Philip O'Kennedy, King of Ormond and Giolla Ruadhan Ua Maccain, the head of the Augustinian prioy at Lorrha.

Chester Beatty Library

A sampling from the Western Collection assembled by Chester Beatty

After touring the Dublin Castle I walked several meters to the Chester Beatty Library which houses an overwhelming collection of high quality manuscripts from around the world.  The artifacts were assembled by Chester Beatty (1875-1968) in the 20th century.  The library has a three collections including Western, Islamic, and East Asian style manuscripts.  Photography is prohibited in all of the exhibits, therefore the photos on this post are from the Chester Beatty Library website.

Illuminated Manuscript, Western Collection

Beatty's collection of Western manuscripts earned him  recognition as a book collector.  He had assembled a collection of over 200 illuminated manuscripts by 1920, this was in addition to his other collections.