Shrine of St Caillín
The Shrine of St Caillín is a metal cumdach (a book-shaped shrine) built before 1536 to hold and protect the 15th century Book of Fenagh manuscript.[1][2]
It has been described s "something of a specialist in the production of battle talismans"[3] and according to legend, in his lifetime commissioned a number of battle standards, including this shrine.[3] The shrine was badly damaged in a 2009 fire at St Mel's Cathedral, Longford, where it had been kept since 1980.[1]
It was acquired by the National Museum of Ireland the following year, while the manuscript is in the collection of the Royal Irish Academy.[4] There is some doubt as to if the shrine was actually intended as a cumdach, given that it is smaller than the manuscript.[1]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c Scott (2017), p. 20
- ^ "The shrine of St Caillín of Fenagh and its place in Irish late medieval art". Royal Irish Academy, 2016. Retrieved 10 August 2022
- ^ a b Lucas (1986), p. 19
- ^ Scott (2017), pp. 18, 20
Sources
[edit]- Lucas, Anthony. "The Social Role of Relics and Reliquaries in Ancient Ireland". The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland, volume 116, 1986. JSTOR 25508904
- Scott, Brendan. "The Making of the Book of Fenagh". History Ireland, volume 25, no. 3, 2017. JSTOR 90014529
External links
[edit]- The Shrine of St Caillín of Fenagh and its place in Irish late medieval art. Lecture by Paul Mullarkey of the National Museum of Ireland, September 2016. Published by The Royal Irish Academy.