A Monumental Guide to Glendalough

Christiaan Corlett

A Monumental Guide to Glendalough

Christiaan Corlett

Text by Christiaan Corlett

Images by Christiaan Corlett, courtesy of Culture Stock

Design and layout by Christiaan Corlett

Published by Coles Lane 2019

This publication is available to download at www.coleslane.com

Coles Lane

CONTENTS

Introduction 1Legends of St Kevin 3Historical background of Glendalough 5The Upper Lake 8St Kevin’s Bed 9Templenaskellig 10Reefert Church 11The stone crosses 12Stone fort 12The Main Monastery 13The gatehouse 14The Cathedral 15The Priest’s House 16St Kevin’s Cross 17The round tower 18St Kevin’s Church 19St Ciaran’s Church 20The Deer Stone 20The satellite churches 21St Mary’s Church 21Trinity Church 22St Saviour’s Church 23Glendalough Mines 24

INTRODUCTION

Glendalough takes its name from the Irish gleann dá locha, which translates as the ‘glen of the two lakes’. The steep-sided valley and the two lakes that give the valley its name were the product of a powerful glacier, one of many that were born in the heart of the Wicklow Moun-tains during the Ice Age. Over several thousand years these sheets of ice carved and shaped the mountains, creating many of the beautiful valleys, lakes and waterfalls that Wicklow is now famous for. At the end of the 6th century a monastery was founded in the valley by St Cóemgen, who is better known today by the English version of his name, Kevin. As we shall see, St Kevin was renowned for his love of animals and plants, and he would probably very pleased to see that today much of Glendalough forms part of the Wicklow Mountains Nation-al Park, ensuring the protection of the animals and plants that dwell in the valley. In time St Kevin’s monastery would become one of the greatest monasteries of early Christian Ireland. The archaeological remains of this monastery have been in state ownership since 1875, when the Office of Public Works began a programme of conservation of many of the ruined churches that were in danger of collapse. St Kevin’s monastery of Glendalough is today considered one of the premier National Monuments in the country.

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Map of the main monuments in the valley of Glendalough

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LEGENDS OF ST KEVIN

The great monastery at Glendalough is believed to have been founded by St Kevin at the end of the 6th century. We know very little about St Kevin, except that his family belonged to a ruling dynasty in Leinster (the east of Ireland). His name in Irish, Cóemgen, reputedly derived from cáem (fair) and gein (birth). We don’t know when Kevin was born, and there is confusion about when he died; one source tells us that he died at the unlikely age of 120 years in 618, while another gives the year of his death as 622. Everything that was documented about St Kevin was written centuries after he died. Some of these stories are preserved in the Latin Life of St Kevin, which was compiled in the late 12th century, but appears to incorporate stories that are much older.

This medieval gilded wooden statue from Glendalough represents a bearded male figure. The left hand holds a psalter, while the right hand is clenched and originally appears to have held something. The man is wearing a cloak and a sandal on his remaining foot. The identity of the figure is not known, though it is very tempting to suggest that it represents St Kevin.

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The Lives of St Kevin tell us that after he took his holy orders he was instructed by an angel to go into the deserted glen of Glendalough. Here he spent his formative years as a young monk living in solitude, living on nettles and sorrels, and sleeping on bare stones on the edge of the Upper Lake. The ancient stories portray a very religious man who had a very deep love for his natural surroundings and the animals that lived in the valley. One of the most famous stories concerns St Kevin and a blackbird. It is said that during lent the saint stood in a cross vigil for six weeks; A blackbird perched on the saint’s hand, and built a nest (remaining there) till she hatched her young.

We are told that after seven years in isolation, an angel from God had to spend a considerable time persuading Kevin to leave his retreat at the Upper Lake in order to found the monastery in the Lower Valley. In one instance he expresses concern that the valley of Glendalough would not be capable of providing enough food for a great monastery without God’s help. The angel replied that many thousands shall dwell there prosperously and abundantly, the Lord preparing for them all earthly necessaries. … For, that place shall be sacred and venerable; kings and the powerful ones of Ireland shall honour it with a religious veneration, on thy account. It shall be enriched with lands, gold and silver, precious gems and silken garments, with gifts from be-yond the sea, as with regal treasures and abundance. A great city shall spring up.

Not content with securing even this promise from God, Kevin went further and sought assur-ances that anyone who would be buried at Glendalough would receive special treatment. The angel said Everyone, however, who shall die on Friday and be buried on a Saturday under the mould of Kevin, shall receive remission for his soul. This was a very powerful bequest and as a result of this we are told that Glendalough became famous as one of the four chief cemeteries in all of Ireland. Not surprisingly, Glendalough has remained a popular burial place throughout the centuries.

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This early cross-inscribed slab reflects the popularity of Glendalough as a burial ground. It once marked the grave of an ecclesiastic and was more recently reused as a headstone.

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HISTORY OF GLENDALOUGH

The folklore that surrounds St Kevin is very colourful and often quite ancient. Unfortunately, when it comes to firm history the facts are thin on the ground. We don’t know when Kevin was born or when he founded the monastery at Glendalough, except that it was most likely towards the end of the 6th century. The ancient annals tell us that he died between 618 and 622. Other early historical sources imply that his father Caemlug was connected to the Dal Messin Corb, who were a collection of families that ruled much of Leinster during the 5th and 6th centuries.

While Glendalough is frequently referred to as a monastery, it is not true to say that it served as a monastery in the same way as later medieval or modern examples. During the earliest centu-ries of Christianity in Ireland, there were no formal parishes or dioceses; these only developed during the 11th and 12th centuries. Prior to this, churches such as Glendalough served a number of different ecclesiastical roles. In the centuries after St Kevin the names of many of the early abbots and early bishops of Glendalough are recorded in the annals. There seems little doubt that Glendalough had multiple ecclesiastical functions.

From a very early stage the religious community here was keen to elevate the monastery here by comparing it with Rome. One of the Lives of Kevin compared Glendalough to A gracious Rome, city of the angels, western Europe’s Rome. While the connection between the centre of medieval Christianity at Rome and Glendalough in the heart of the Wicklow Mountains may seem unlikely, this was legitimised in one of the Lives of Kevin in the following way:Kevin went to the court of Rome,And brought back with him the wonderous earth,And received openly from the popeRight of pilgrimage and excellent honour.Great is the pilgrimage of Kevin.If men should perform it aright;To go seven times to his fair is the sameAs to go once to Rome.This association with Rome had the dual effect of raising Glendalough’s popularity as both a place of burial and pilgrimage.

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St Kevin’s Church and St Mary’s Church at the Lower Valley.

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In 836 Glendalough was one of a number of prominent churches plundered by the Vikings, pre-sumably in search of the treasures of the monastery. In the case of Glendalough it is specifically mentioned that the dertach was burnt. This Irish word literally translates as ‘oak house’ and was used to describe a wooden church. In all probability, the churches at Glendalough at this time were all wooden buildings. In 1020 it is recorded that Glendalough was once again burned with its oratories, implying that several of the churches in the valley were severely damaged by fire. No reason for the fire is documented, however, it is quite certain that it wasn’t accidental. It may also have been the motivation for the construction of the first stone churches at Glendalough.

At the end of the 11th century there was a sudden increase in church building at Glendalough. It has been suggested that many of the churches were constructed at this time by Muirchert-ach Ua Briain, king of Munster (southern Ireland), in order to establish Glendalough as a fully equipped ecclesiastical rival to Dublin, which had ambitions to be at the head of a new diocesan church system in Ireland. Muirchertach Ua Briain had pretentions of becoming high-king of all Ireland and feared that his own political position would be undermined if Dublin succeeded in its ambitions.

The round tower (see page 18) is one of a number of buildings that was constructed around the year 1100 in an attempt to elevate the status of the site during the period that Glendalough had pretentions of becoming a diocesan centre.

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Muirchertach Ua Briain’s strategy was successful. In 1111, a synod of the Irish church agreed a new diocesan system whereby Dublin was subsumed into a newly formed diocese of Glen-dalough. However, this new found status of Glendalough was short-lived. In 1152 the roles were reversed and Glendalough became a suffragen of Dublin. In 1216 Glendalough was fully subsumed into the diocese of Dublin.

During the 12th century, when Glendalough was at the height of its power, the abbacy of the monastery was held by the O’Toole family. The most famous was Laurence O’Toole, who was abbot at Glendalough between 1153 and 1162. In 1162 he became archbishop of Dublin (which now included Glendalough), a post that he held until his death in 1180 at Eu in Normandy. A Life of Laurence O’Toole was written after his death, in which it was claimed that he spent great riches, given to him by his father, feeding the poor and building churches in the valley. In 1225 he was canonised, making him the second saint directly associated with Glendalough.

Since the turn of the 13th century, the significance of Glendalough rapidly fell into decline. The secular patronage that Glendalough had enjoyed from Leinster kings was wiped out with the coming of the Normans who saw little room for this ancient Irish monastery in the new world that was unfolding. Gradually many of the church buildings at Glendalough fell into disre-pair. Without secular patronage the ecclesiastical community could no longer sustain itself as it once had. By the end of the 17th century the churches at Glendalough had fallen into ruins. However, one of the benefits of this is that Glendalough today is one of the best-preserved early Christian church sites anywhere in the world.

In the Visitor’s Centre is a 12th century cross known as the Market Cross. The front of the cross fea-tures the crucified Christ, set against a pattern of interlace. Below Christ is an ecclesiastic wearing an alb and a chasuble. Perhaps this represents St Kevin himself, but there is a very strong possibility that it represents a mid-12th century ecclesiastic at Glendalough, such as Laurence O’Toole. The cross features a number of holes that may have been intended for removable elements. For example, a socket at the breast of Christ may have been set with a jewel or relic representing the sacred heart.

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THE UPPER LAKE

The area around the Upper Lake at Glendalough is traditionally seen as the place where St Kevin spent his early religious years in isolation from the world. In particular, St Kevin’s Bed was seen as the place where he slept during these years. Both St Kevin’s Bed and Templena-skellig, under the cliffs on the southern side of the lake, are only accessible by boat. The most important church at the Upper Lake was Reefert Church. Also in this area are a series of stone crosses and the remains of a small stone fort.

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ST KEVIN’S BED

St Kevin’s Bed is mentioned in the Life of Laurence O’Toole, who was abbot of Glendalough during the 1150s. In this document, which was compiled at the beginning of the 13th century, the bed is described as being carved out of the rock by St Kevin with his own hands. The Life also claims that Laurence O’Toole often stayed in the bed during Lent, even after he left Glen-dalough to become Archbishop of Dublin, and that in his time a wooden ladder gave access to St Kevin’s Bed from the lake below. Though sometimes referred to as a cave, St Kevin’s Bed is entirely artificial. It is also very small, with barely enough room to sit up or even lie down.

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TEMPLENASKELLIG The Irish name of this church Temple na skellig, meaning ‘the church of the rock’, is very appro-priate. It is situated near St Kevin’s Bed, under the steep slopes of Lugduff. Clearly it was always intended that Templenaskellig be set apart from the rest of the churches in the valley, and was probably designed as a hermitage for anchorites emulating St Kevin’s alleged early years of iso-lation at the Upper Lake. The church consists of a small rectangular building that was partly rebuilt in its present form in the 1870s. The massive granite lintel that formed the head of the western doorway is lying on the ground. At the east end is a window with a double rounded headed lintel. This window suggests that the church was built around the middle of the 12th century, but it is also possible that it was inserted at this time and that the main building itself was constructed in the late 11th century.

To the east of the church is a decorated stone cross. To the west are several terraces that prob-ably served as gardens for growing vegetables and herbs. The remains of the monks dwellings have also been found here.

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REEFERT CHURCH

Reefert Church is today tucked away in a wooded area on the southern side of the valley near the Upper Lake. It takes its name from the Irish ríogh fheart, meaning royal cemetery. This was traditionally believed to have been the burial place of local kings.

The stone church consists of a nave and chancel building. It was probably built around 1100, making it one of the first nave and chancel churches built in Ireland. The small chancel arch is constructed from undecorated granite blocks. The tiny chancel is lit by a small round headed east window. The west doorway has a flat lintel and inclining jambs. At either end of the nave and at the east end of the chancel are projecting corbels or brackets to carry the roof beyond the gable ends of the church. Around the church are a series of early graves, reflecting the im-portance of this site as a burial ground. There are also several stone crosses in the graveyard around the church, which may have been designed as stations for pilgrims performing rounds.

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STONE CROSSES

Near the Upper Lake, and forming a line roughly north-south, are a series of stone crosses. The largest and most northerly cross is situated close to the road leading to the Miners Village, near where the Glenealo River exits the Upper Lake. Further south are three stone crosses situated quite close together. One of these, missing an arm, stands under an oak tree. To the south of this is a stone cross perched on top of a mound of stones, and nearby is a small broken cross, also standing on a stone mound. These crosses are likely to have served as stations for pilgrims visiting the Upper Lake, and they appear to mark an early pilgrim road that linked the Upper Lake with the main monastery in the lower valley.

STONE FORT

The circular stone fort that stands on the low ground near three of the stone crosses is somewhat of an enigma. In its present form the stone fort consists of a circular wall that encloses an area 16m across, and is entirely a modern reconstruction, rebuilt from the material that was found at the site. It appears to represent the remains of a ringfort, a defended farmstead from the 7th and 9th centuries.

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THE MAIN MONASTERY

The main monastery at Glendalough is located on a low ridge at the entrance to the valley. To the west of this ridge is the Lower Lake, from which the Glenealo River passes gently around the southern side of the monastery. Here the Glenealo River meets the Glendasan River, which gushes around the northern and eastern sides of the monastery. Much like the ancient pilgrim to Glendalough, the modern visitor must also cross the Glendasan or Glenealo Rivers to enter or leave the main monastery.

Here at the main monastery are some of the most memorable churches and buildings at Glen-dalough. These include a gatehouse, the Cathedral, the round tower, St Kevin’s Cross and a small building known as the Priest’s House. All of these are within what was the core mon-astery of Glendalough. During the 11th century the monastery expanded to the south, with the construction of St Kevin’s Church and St Ciaran’s Church.

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THE GATEHOUSE

During the 12th century visitors to Glendalough entered the main monastery through a gate-house. Even today, this continues to be the main point of access for most visitors to the site. This unusual building is the only example of a monastic gatehouse known in Ireland. It is possible that it was styled on gatehouses at contemporary walled towns such as Dublin, and may have been intended to give the impression to contemporary visitors of entering a monastic city. Anyone visiting Glendalough in the 12th century would have known that this was not a secular gatehouse. For example, it features projections of both gable ends, which was a feature of earlier Irish stone churches, such as the nearby Cathedral. Furthermore, immediately inside the gate is a large upright stone slab featuring an incised cross, that emphasised to the visitor that they were entering the ecclesiastical area.

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THE CATHEDRAL

A short distance from the gatehouse is the church known as the Cathedral. This is the largest church in Glendalough. It features projections of the side walls beyond both the east and west gables. These are typical of the earliest stone churches in Ireland, and are believed to be a carry-over from earlier timber-built churches. The west doorway has a flat lintel and external-ly there is a raised architrave, which may also be a stylistic carry-over from earlier wooden churches.

The Cathedral appears to have been constructed at the end of the 11th century. However, one of the intriguing aspects of this building is that it actually preserves the remains of an older stone church that stood on the same site. This older church was entirely dismantled and its stones were used to construct the present building. For example, the large stones at the base belong to the earlier church, and so too does the west doorway.

Sometime before 1200 a chancel was added to the east end of the nave, thereby conforming to the liturgical norm of the period. The chancel arch and the windows in the chancel were all carved with Dundry limestone, imported from Bristol. This reveals a Norman influence at Glendalough, also reflected by the fact that the Cathedral was by this time dedicated to St Peter and St Paul. It is generally believed that these alterations were made during the period 1192 to 1212 when William Piro served as the first Norman bishop of Glendalough.

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THE PRIEST’S HOUSE

This curious little building takes its name from the fact that it was used for the burial of Catho-lic priests during the 18th century. By the middle of the 19th century the building had almost entirely collapsed, and what can be seen today is a reconstruction carried-out in the 1870s from the stones that survived amongst the rubble. Over the door is a carved stone featuring a central seated figure holding an open book on his lap. On one side is an ecclesiastic holding a bell and on the other is an ecclesiastic holding a crozier. It seems doubtful that it originally formed the lintel over the door. It is quite possible that the stone may be a depiction of a story that tells of St Kevin being presented with a bell by St Ciaran. If so, perhaps this stone originally belonged to St Ciaran’s Church (see page 20).

The most intriguing part of the Priest’s House is the decorative arch and columns forming a window at the east end. The arch has all the appearance of a window reversed, in that the dec-orated portion would normally be found on the inside rather than the outside. So what was the purpose of this little building? It is possible that it was a mortuary chapel built over the grave, or what was believed to be, of St Kevin. Notably, the grave of St Kevin at Glendalough is not recorded. Alternatively, perhaps the building was intended as a reliquary chapel to house a number of the relics associated with St Kevin. This would explain the reversed window that allowed pilgrims to look at the relics within.

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ST KEVIN’S CROSS

St. Kevin’s Cross is situated a short distance south of the Cathedral. This massive cross stands 3.6m high and is set into a flat stone that is level with the ground. It is carved from a single piece of granite, though the bottom is shaped to give the impression of a separate base. The cross, with its unperforated ring (a symbol of the victory of Christ), has been very finely carved, but notably there is no decoration of any kind. Today visitors are told that it brings luck to anyone who is able embrace the cross and join their hands.

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THE ROUND TOWER

Perhaps the most iconic building at Glendalough is the round tower. This tower was probably built around the year 1100, and served as a bell tower. Despite only shallow foundations, the tower stands a little over 30m tall. The doorway faces the Cathedral and is a little over 3m above the ground. Internally there are a series of joist holes that indicate that there were six stages of wooden floors above the doorway. Windows spiral around the circumference of the tower, one to each floor, while the top floor has four windows. The roof was reconstructed in 1876 using the stones from the original roof that had collapsed.

The original purpose of this building was as a bell tower. However, it is clear that this was a very elaborate structure to simply house a bell. When it was built at the turn of the 12th century, it was one of the tallest buildings ever constructed in Ireland. This must tell us something about its function, and it seems likely that these towers were designed as a symbol of the role of the early church in mediating between mortals on earth and God in heaven above.

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ST KEVIN’S CHURCH

Together with the round tower, St Kevin’s Church and its little belfry, is one of the most distinctive and impressive buildings at Glendalough. It is also one of the most complex and intriguing buildings. At the west end of the church is a tall, flat-lintelled doorway. High above the doorway is a small round belfry tower.

The building has a steep, stone-built roof, and high above the interior of the building is a barrel vault. Originally the space under the vault formed a separate level with a wooden floor that was lit by a window at the east end. The wooden floor has long since disappeared, and the purpose of this former floor level is not clear, but it may have been intended as a space for an anchorite. Above the vault is another chamber within the roof space. It is lit by a small window at the east end. The purpose of this space is also unclear, though it probably was intended as a safe storage space for precious manuscripts and relics. This is also implied by the fact that it can only be accessed by a very tall ladder and a small hole in the vaulted ceiling.

It is thought that St Kevin’s Church was constructed at the very end of the 11th century or the early years of the 12th century. Not long after it was built, a small chancel was added to the east end of the church. Unfortunately, this chancel has disappeared, with only the chancel arch sur-viving, but we know that it had a stone roof that mirrored the roof of the main building. While the chancel has disappeared, still surviving is a stone-roofed building that was annexed to its northern side. This annex was probably designed to accommodate an anchorite or hermit who would have resided for a period of time in this space in secluded prayer, possibly in emulation of St Kevin himself. Lying on the ground beside the church is a large granite slab decorated with two crosses. This may represent the front of the altar that once stood in the chancel.

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St Ciaran’s Church is the least well-preserved of all the churches in Glendalough and only the lower portions of the walls survive. St Ciaran is associated with Clonmacnoise, Co. Offaly, and the dedication of a church at Glendalough to this well-known saint of the Irish midlands reflects a union between Clonmacnoise and Glendalough that existed before the 12th century. It is quite likely that pilgrims who visited this church at that time would have seen a bell that St Ciaran is reputed to have presented to St Kevin, though no such bell survives today.

DEER STONE

The Deer Stone is situated on the southern side of the Glenealo River, a short distance from St Kevin’s Church. It consists of a jumble of granite rocks, one of which has a bowl-shaped basin. This was most likely designed for used as a mortar for grinding purposes, but over the centuries it became associated with a story described in the Lives of Kevin:There was a shortness of milk in Glendalough at that time. Kevin saw a doe and her fawn, and commanded her to half her milk and lactage to his foster-child … But a wolf came to the doe, and killed her fawn. Then Kevin wrought a great miracle. He com-manded the wild wolf to take the place of the fawn with the doe. In the hollow stone … the doe would leave every day enough of her milk and lactage to satisfy the child.This story resembles the ancient foundation myth of Rome in which Romulus and Remus as babies were suckled by a wolf, and it may be no coincidence that Glendalough saw itself as an Irish Rome.

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ST CIARAN’S CHURCH

THE SATELLITE CHURCHES

Apart from Reefert Church and Templenaskellig at the Upper Lake, and the Cathedral, St Kevin’s Church and St Ciaran’s Church at the main monastery, there are also three more churches in the Lower Valley at Glendalough, namely St Mary’s Church, Trinity Church and St Saviour’s Church. As we shall see, St Mary’s Church was probably a nunnery situated out-side, but close to, the main monastery, while St Saviour’s Church was the site of an Augustin-ian monastery, similarly sited away from the main monastery. Trinity Church, situated beside the main approach into Glendalough, may have served as a mortuary chapel.

ST MARY’S CHURCH

It has been suggested that St Mary’s Church was built in memory of a woman called Derbor-gaill who died at Glendalough in 1098. It is quite likely that she had come to Glendalough to join a nunnery in the final years of her life, which was common practice at this time. Der-borgaill was the mother of Muirchertach Ua Briain, king of Munster, who appears to have embarked on a programme of church building at Glendalough at the end of the 11th century. St Mary’s Church is situated less than 100m west of the main monastery and is very much visible from the Cathedral. The church was constructed around 1100, and originally consisted of a simple rectangular church. The west doorway is the original entrance into the church. Exter-nally the doorway has a raised architrave, similar to the west doorway of the Cathedral. The most interesting feature of this doorway is easily overlooked by visitors; on the underside of the lintel over the door is a saltire cross.

Towards the very end of the 12th century a chancel was added to the east end of the former church, which now became the nave of the newly configured building. The small east window is carved from Dundry stone, imported from Bristol. Externally the window has a hood featur-ing a Greek key motif, terminating in animal heads.

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TRINITY CHURCH

Trinity Church is situated on the eastern approach to Glendalough from Laragh, a little over 400m before arriving at the main monastery. Today most people pass by this little church without even noticing it tucked into the hillside below the road. Yet this is perhaps the most attractively situated church in Glendalough.

It was constructed around 1100 when it consisted of a nave and chancel building similar to Reefert Church near the Upper Lake. At the west end of the nave is a flat headed doorway, which formed the original entrance into the church. Shortly after it was constructed, the church was transformed with the addition of a small extension to its west end. The function of this extension is not obvious today, but we know from an early painting that it originally had a stone roof that supported a round belfry, somewhat like the example at St Kevin’s Church. Unfortunately, the tower fell during a storm in 1818. If it had survived this would have meant that there were three round belfries at Glendalough, more than at any other site in the country.

When Trinity Church was built it was the first church that visitors met on their way to the main monastery. It is quite possible that the church served as a mortuary chapel where the deceased who were being brought prior to burial in the main cemetery. If so, they were probably kept in the small room under the former tower.

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ST SAVIOUR’S CHURCH

St Saviours Church was the last church constructed in Glendalough. It was probably built between 1153 and 1162, during Lorcán Ua Tuathail’s time as abbot of Glendalough, and was founded for canons regular of St Augustine. It is situated beside the Glendasan River, about 1km to the southeast of the main monastery. In the 13th century it was called by its Latin name Insula Sancti Salvatoris, suggesting that the church was originally situated on an island. St Saviours Church was in very poor condition and severely collapsed before it was almost en-tirely reconstructed in the 1870s. Though this is a relatively modest church for the period, it contains some of the most elaborate carvings found in any Romanesque church in Ireland.

The bases of the columns supporting the chancel arch are all in their original positions and fea-ture chevrons, step patterns, floral forms and a triquetra knot. The capitals of the columns are also highly decorated. A capital on the southern side features the prow of a boat, with mast and sail. The facial features of heads on the angles of this capital have largely worn away, but the hair of one is finely preserved where it is intertwined with the tail of an animal figure, possibly a lion. The highly decorative arch overhead is entirely reconstructed in 1875 from the stones that were found on the site. The east window of the chancel was also rebuilt using the original stones that were found at the site. Internally the window is decorated with various motifs, in-cluding a lion biting its tail, two affronted birds, a knotted cross, a six petalled marigold design and a beautiful petalled flower.

Adjoining the north side of the nave is a building that has also been entirely reconstructed. The purpose of this portion of the church is unclear. Perhaps it served as a dormitory and refectory for the Augustinian canons. It is also possible that there was a scriptorium here, and the Au-gustinians during this period are known to have been actively compiling various books, such as the oldest known account of St Kevin, written in Latin.

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The main adits in Glendalough are high above the northern side of the valley. The ore was carried from these mines using wagons on tracks down to the floor of the valley below. Here are the remains of a series of buildings that are sometimes referred to as the Miners Village, but in fact represent the offices, stores, workshops, forge and dressing floor associated with the mining activity. The processing of the lead ores was entirely dependent on water to power the machinery. Water was diverted from the Glenealo River into a small reservoir, created in order to create a manageable supply of water that was fed throughout the complex. This water turned a large wheel which powered a rolls crusher that was formerly housed in the ruinous two-sto-rey building at the heart of the complex. Together with the mines at neighbouring Glendasan, these are the most important examples of 19th century lead mines in Ireland.

GLENDALOUGH MINES

At the beginning of the 19th century a seam of lead was discovered deep in the Glendalough valley, west of the Upper Lake. In 1825 the lead mine was acquired by the Mining Company of Ireland, who expanded the workings to include the mines in the Glendasan valley to the north. Indeed, one of their adits was subsequently driven right through Camaderry Mountain, joining the two workings of both valleys. The mining activity was at its height during the 1850s and 1860s, but continued into the early 20th century. During this period the lead was brought to the smelter at Ballycorus near Dublin. Here the lead was used to produce lead sheeting, piping and lead oxide, which was used in paints and also gunshot. The silver content of the lead was also separated at Ballycorus.

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Coles Lane