From the moment I saw a picture of the west wall of this church I have wanted to visit here. It really does have to rate amongst Ireland's best eclesiastical sites.
Lying in the shadow of the round tower the church is a roofless ruin now, but the carvings on the west end are special. The images are, like many of the sculpted high crosses biblical scenes - the nicest of which is the Adam and Eve.
I was advised to visit in the afternoon so that the west end was lit by the sun. As it turned out I got here approaching sunset on a beautifully clear day and so the end wall and carvings were lit up bright orange and well defined by shadow. I would recommend this approach to everyone.
Click Thumbnail to View Full Size Image
_
_
_
_
_All Sites Visited On 23rd June 2002 « Previous Site Next Site »
As it was just after midday when I arrived here and I had realised that the sun would be lighting up the the west end of the church at any moment I sat around waiting for it to happen. I waited for an hour! The west wall does not face due west at all. However, it was worth the wait. At around one o'clock the sun finally started to light up the carvings on this wall.
By one thirty all the panels were highlighted and many details I hadn't previously noticed were now visible. Two panels that I didn't think had anything on them do contain very eroded figures. One of these appears to be someone riding a horse - perhaps Jesus entering Jeruselum.
As well as the wonderful Adam and Eve panel and the depiction of the Judgement of Solomon I really like the Weighing of the Souls panel. This is very simple, but very clear: a floating set of unbalanced scales has two demons pulling down on them. Hanging from one of the pans there is a small figure, clutching on for the sake of saving his soul.
Sadly the church was locked, so I could not take another look at the ogham stones within. There was no indication of whether the key is availabe from anywhere.
Click Thumbnail to View Full Size Image
_
_
_All Sites Visited On 4th February 2007 « Previous Site Next Site »
| Tom Fairley from Dromore Down |  |
A Random Selection of Nearby Monuments
 St. Molaise's House (Co. Fermanagh) |  Rossinver (Co. Leitrim) |  St. Mary's Church (Co. Wicklow) |
 Killiney Church (Co. Dublin) |  Fore Abbey (Co. Westmeath) |  Claggan (Co. Donegal) |
