There were some impressive monuments, including the Boyle Monument; the chair used by King William III when he came to St. Patrick's to give thanks to God or his victory over King James II at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690; and a stone found in June 1901, six feet below the surface of the traditional site of St. Patrick's Well, 91 feet due north from the north west angle of the tower. This stone was located in the vicinity of the church that was here before the Cathedral was built in 1192. When it was unearthed, it covered the remains of an ancient well. Some believe the stone was carved between 800 and 1100; where these tone was quarried remains a mystery. Only 32 stones of this type have been found in Dublin; six are located in St. Patrick's Cathedral.
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From Ireland (2015) |
Jonathan Swift, known for Gulliver's Travels and A Modest Proposal, was Dean from 1713 to 1745 and was buried in the church.
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From Ireland (2015) |
After lunch, we took a tour of the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity (Ardteampall Chríost), more commonly known as Christ Church Cathedral. The Cathedral was founded in 1030 AD and was a Catholic church until about 1539, when Henry VIII converted the nearby Chapter House of the Augustinian Canons' priory and associated church to an Anglican cathedral.
I know little of architecture, which is why these sorts of tours are interesting; the tour guide was able to point out the different stones being used, as well as some of the other artistry in terms of columns and floor design.
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From Ireland (2015) |
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From Ireland (2015) |
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From Ireland (2015) |
The Cathedral Church is connected to what is now Dublinia, a historical recreation museum, but which used to be the priory, and formerly the site of St. Michael's Church. One can apparently go up the tower if one is so inclined. (We were not.) There were three exhibits in the museum - one on Viking Dublin, another on medieval Dublin, and third on archaeological practices. It was the last exhibit that I found most interesting: It included the skeletal remains of a Viking warrior and a medieval woman, both found in Dublin. I didn't actually spend much time in that exhibit, though, since by that point we were both getting tired. The other exhibits had a lot of good information; it seemed a good museum for those with children (there were a lot of hands on activities) or who wanted a brief overview of Dublin's history, but since we had spent so much time at the National Museum of Ireland's Archaeology branch, which included an exhibit on the Vikings, we didn't stay long.
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