Early Irish Monasteries

Most of Ireland’s early monasteries were founded in the sixth and seventh centuries. They and the ‘saints’ who founded them were so much a part of the Irish identity that the most typical features of their sites, the high crosses and round towers, were later adopted as symbols of Irish national identity. Some were founded in out-of-the-way places or on small islands, while others were located on good land or near important routeways. The large monasteries became important centres of population, learning, trade and craftsmanship and by the tenth and eleventh centuries some were large enough to be classed as towns. Today, many remnants of these monasteries survive, ranging from tiny hermitages on islands off the west coast to major settlements such as Clonmacnoise and Glendalough. Visitors are attracted by their religious and historical associations, by the remarkable carvings on their cross-slabs and crosses and the stark beauty of their buildings. Early Irish Monasteries is a succinct and vibrant description of how the monasteries were developed and organised.It looks at surviving monastic monuments throughout Ireland, from tiny drystone oratories and slab shrines to larger churches and round towers. The text is beautifully illustrated with colour and black and white photographs of monasteries and monastic monuments.