High Crosses of Kilfenora Cathedral #ireland #irishhistory #celticcross #kilfenora #countyclare #doortycross
Saint Fachtnan’s Cathedral, KILFENORA, Kilfenora, CLARE https://www.buildingsofireland.ie/bui… For more detailed information and links to sources please visit http://irelandinsidenadout.com.
Kilfenora was the site of an important early monastic settlement. St. Fachtna founded an Abbey here in the sixth century. Kilfenora gained the title “City of the Crosses”, a reference to the High Crosses within or near the precincts of the cathedral. The Doorty Cross https://www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/coc…
This 12th century cross is the centerpiece of the glass-roofed chapel at Kilenora. High cross expert Brian Mooney has been cited as saying that it is a 12th century cross of post-Norse because of its design, which includes a carving of Saint Fachtnan, Kilfenora’s original bishop. The cross was broken apart into two pieces, with the lower slab described by archeologists in 1910 along with head of a cross in the sacristy.
In 1946 researchers realized that the cross head and the monumental stone belonged to the same monument. in the mid 1950s the two parts were joined together and placed standing near the Doorty family grave where the slab had lain since 1752. It became known as the “Doorty Cross.”
In 2003 the heavily weather cross was moved under the glass roof of the cathedral to protect it. North Cross Near the north western corner of the cathedral graveyard is the North Cross. According to an article by Jack Flanagan, until approximately 1955 the cross was buried deeply at the head of a grave of the Quinn family in the parish. About that time the cross was raised and now it stands about two meters tall.
The cross appears early in design and has no ring, so in all respects it looks like it was designed as a marker for the lands around the Abbey. https://www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/coc… The South Cross https://www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/coc…
The south cross stands within the graveyard near the south wall. Only a portion of its shaft survives. It stands near the entrance door to the Cathedral’s nave, near where it was found. The upper part is missing. The cross was originally about four meters tall based on the size of the shaft.
The High Cross aka the West Cross https://www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/coc…
The cross in the field west of the cathedral is the tallest and best preserved of the Kilfenora group. It has been heavily weathered, especially on its west face. It is 4.5 meters tall and tapers by about 25 centimeters from base to top.
Elaborately carved, the cross may have once been part of a tomb or shrine, a theory that stems from an unworked portion of stone at the base. Read more at https://irelandinsideandout.com/ Contact: [email protected]