RAHAN MONASTIC SITE - Offaly County Council

APPENDICES1940 Francoise HenryFrancoise Henry writing in 1940 stated that the Church of St Carthage at Rahan was a building of the greatestinterest. 71 She describes the building as possessing two small square sacristies. The very wide chancel arch restson two carved piers, and from the disposition of the walls of the sacristies it appears that the nave was hardly widerthan the choir. 72According to Henry:This disposition of pilasters, with engaged columns, animated capitals, and bulbous bases, is foundnowhere else in the west. The only place in the Christian world, where it is a constant feature froman early time to the sixteenth century, is Armenia. The chapel of the Palace of Ani, built before theArab invasion, has piers very similar to those of Rahan. 73 Henry goes on to describe the Churchof St Carthage as a — surprising feature, an Armenian arch and a church of Oriental plan, erectedin the heart of Ireland. 74 The human faces on the capitals of the chancel arch she describesas — beautiful pieces of carving, strong, haughty faces, with curling moustache and beard. This isnative art at its best. 751970 Francoise HenryIn 1970 Francoise Henry considered the function of the loft space above the chancel of the church at Rahan andsuggested that they may have been used as places of refuge, which could be easily defended. 76 She also suggestedthat — One may wonder also if in some cases these rooms did not constitute a treasury adjoining the church. The‘Staff of Jesus’, the most precious relic of Armagh, was kept in the twelfth century in a ‘cave’ or crypt, which couldperfectly well be a vaulted room. 77 It is therefore possible that the chamber over the chancel at Rahan, whichwould have been fireproof, may have acted as a safe room or treasury where the relics of the monastery were kept.These relics could be brought down from this chamber and put on display in one of the private side chapels whenpilgrims came to the monastery of Rahan.1972 Peter HarbisonIn his publication A Guide to the National Monuments of Ireland, Harbison described Rahan as:‘The roofed church, now unfortunately pebbledashed, was begun in the twelfth century. It wasoriginally in the shape of a cross but the two transepts have largely disappeared. There is a finechancel arch decorated with heads, and the north, south and parts of the east wall of the chancelare also Romanesque. The east window was inserted in the thirteenth (though the present windowis modern) and the vault above added possibly in the fifteenth century. Near the altar was asmall doorway leading to a chamber above the vault; the doors leading to the transepts have nowbeen blocked up. The nave was built in 1732 but the lower parts are probably fifteenth century.The fine window on the north side decorated with a bird, a griffin and a dragon eating its tail,probably belonged to the fifteenth century nave. The most unique feature of the church is theround Romanesque window high up in the exterior wall of the east gable church; it bears excellentRomanesque decoration and once stood in the west gable above the door.’ 781993 Michael HerityIn 1993 Michael Herity suggested that some of these churches with stone roofed buildings may have been builtas tomb-shrines, such as St Columba’s House at Kells. 79 It is possible that the A-shaped space over the chancel ofthe twelfth century church at Rahan acted as a tomb-shrine, housing the remains or relics of the founding fathersof the monastery; it was a safe fireproof place where the relics of the church were kept, acting like a treasury.They would then have been brought down from this space where they were stored and placed on display in theside chapels for visiting pilgrims to view.79