St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin, Ireland

Ok, now back to my adventures.  I have been doing a lot of traveling, working and writing. I am hoping to have my first scientific publication out in 2012. =) 

On the afternoon of September 8th, I made my way back to St. Patrick's Cathedral.  Earlier that week I had tried to enter the church but it was after 5 pm and everything was closed. That adventure was posted on the blog titled "September 5th: Dublin, Ireland".  But this time I was there at 1pm so I had plenty of time.  This Thursday was a beautiful day with the sun shining and few clouds in the sky.  The gardens around the church and the church itself looked amazing.

I made my way around the church to the front entrance. Now some of you may not know but in some Churches like this one during viewing hours you have to pay an entrance fee usually about 5 euros or about $7. Honestly I do not mind because I believe a good portion of the money collected from the entrance fee is used to maintain the building.  Once inside the church I was aw struck by how large it was. There was even a small gift shop in the back corner of the church.


When you think about a huge cathedral you invasion beautiful cathedral ceilings, decorative walls and huge stain glass windows and that is exactly what I saw once inside St. Patrick's Cathedral.

As I started to walk around the cathedral I started to notice the large amount of history on display in the cathedral. I have always had an interest in history and that is one of the many things I love about Europe, the unique history that the USA does not have.

IMAGE 1

These two granite stone was located in the vicinity of the church that was here before the Cathedral was built in 1192. When it was unearthed in 1901, the stone on the left [IMAGE 1]  covered the remains of an ancient well. It may have been the well where St. Patrick baptized converts in the fifth century.

IMAGE 2

The  second stone [IMAGE 2] probably marked the grave of an early Christian. Scholars believe the stones were carved some time between 800 and 1100. Where the stone was quarried remains a mystery. only 32 stones of this type have been found in Dublin; six are located in St. Patrick's Cathedral.





Through out the Cathedral I saw many statues many were of past Archbishops of Dublin.

 
Even the floor of the Cathedral was a decorative tile and there were decorative arches throughout the Cathedral. 

In the Cathedral there were many different historical artifacts one was a Carved Oak Chest created in the 14th Century. 

This chest was used to protect the Cathedral's vestments, silver and important legal documents from loss, theft, or being eaten by rodents. It is decorated with four carved panels depicting mythical beats on top, a stallion in the lower left and a goat in the bottom right.

In the front of the Cathedral there was a magnificent alter and choir area, it was amazing to see the unique architecture and beautiful stain glass.

On each side of the main alter are a small chapel area, each one had a unique name and style.

  

In St. Patrick's the Lady Chapel has played a unique role in welcoming believers of other denominations. Having the persecution in France in 1666 Huguenot refugees were grant used of the Lady Chapel for their services by the Dean and Chapter. The Huguenot exercised a very important influence on the cultural and commercial lid of the country. Services in French continues in the Lady Chapel until 1816.  For a few years, the Lady Chapel was used as a Chapter House. In 1845, Dean Henry Pakenham undertook restoration of the Lady Chapel which was conducted under the supervision of architect Richard C. Carpenter.

It was great to see such history and beautiful architecture. I really enjoyed learning all the history and took so many pictures and videos. After spending about 2 hours in the Cathedral, it was time for me to head back to the hotel and get ready to leave with my co-supervisor (St) to Kilkenny, Ireland.