Ullard Monastery

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View of the preserved nave from the south

The Ullard Monastery ( Irish Iolard ) goes back to an early Christian foundation by St. Fiachra , who died in 670. The monastery is just above the western bank of the River Barrow across from the village of Borris and north of Graiguenamanagh in County Kilkenny . A high cross from the 9th or 10th century has been preserved.

History and architecture

The founder, St. Fiachra, had previously been an abbot at Clonard and Conwall , Donegal . After Ullard was founded, he later moved to France , where he lived in a hermit hermitage near Meaux until his death . His feast day in Ireland is February 8th.

The west entrance to the church in Romanesque style.

The monastery must have experienced a certain heyday in the 9th or 10th century, because today's remains date from this time. The church is characterized by the west entrance built in Romanesque style. In contrast to the usual practice in Ireland, granite was used instead of sandstone , so that the details of the stone carvings appear stronger and simpler in comparison. Only the two outer arches are still in their original form, the inner, third arch is the result of a later attempt at restoration.

The high cross, which is also made of granite and stands at the south-eastern corner of the church, also dates from this time. However, part of the shaft has not been preserved, so it was replaced as part of a restoration. On the east side of the high cross, the crucifixion of Christ can be seen in the middle. On the left there is a depiction of David playing a lyre . The instrument is shown with one round and one straight arm and is one of a series of realistic illustrations of musical instruments on Irish high crosses. The lyres were widespread in Europe until around 1000 before they were replaced by harps . To the right of the crucifixion is the sacrifice of Isaac , the image above can no longer be interpreted. The west side is much more difficult to see. Harbison suspects here that scenes from the life of the hermits Paul and Antonius are depicted.

Are located near Bullau stones Ullard I and II.

literature

Primary sources

  • John O'Donovan, James H. Todd: The Martyrology of Donegal: A Calendar Of The Saints Of Ireland . Dublin 1864.
  • Whitley Stokes: The Martyrology of Oengus the Culdee . London 1905.

Secondary literature

  • Harold G. Leask: Irish Churches and Monastic Buildings. Vol. 1, Dundalgan Press, Dundalk 1955, OCLC 491006980 .
  • Lord Killanin, Michael V. Duignan: The Shell Guide to Ireland . Second edition. Ebury Press, London 1967, OCLC 455966 .
  • Aubrey Gwynn , R. Neville Hadcock: Medieval Religious Houses Ireland . Longman, London 1970, ISBN 0-582-11229-X .
  • Peter Harbison: Irish High Crosses with the figure sculptures explained . Boyne Valley Honey Company, Drogheda 1994, ISBN 0-9517823-7-1 .
  • Ann Buckley: Music in Ireland to c. 1500 . From: Dáibhí Ó Cróinín (Ed.): Prehistoric and Early Ireland. (A New History of Ireland, 1). Oxford University Press, Oxford 2005, ISBN 0-19-821737-4 , pp. 744-808.

Web links

Commons : Ullard  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Remarks

  1. ^ Gwynn, Hadcock: Medieval Religious Houses Ireland. 1970, p. 409.
  2. ↑ a b Killanin, Duignan: The Shell Guide to Ireland. 1967, p. 302.
  3. ↑ See the entries for February 8 in the Martyrologia des Donegal and Oengus.
  4. ↑ See Leask: Irish Churches and Monastic Buildings. 1955, pp. 126, 127.
  5. ↑ a b Harbison : Irish High Crosses with the figure sculptures explained. 1994, pp. 107-108.
  6. ↑ Cf. Buckley: Music in Ireland to c. 1500. 2005, pp. 767-768.

Coordinates: 52 ° 34 '48.5 "  N , 6 ° 55' 57.7"  W.