On our way to Kells #4; Rathmore Abbey

Our first day of cycling towards Kells ended with a visit to Rathmore Abbey. It was raining (not too hard, but it would get worse) and we still had about 90 minutes to cycle to our BnB, where we had to be by a certain time. So the visit to the Abbey was short, but not any less rewarding. As has now become usual, we found the Abbey in the middle of a field, with cows grazing around it (seen here through one of the Abbey's windows).

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Despite all the time spent in Irish graveyards for over a year now, I am still amazed by how normal it is here to cross someone's land to get to some historic place. It is probably simply because we don't have such a huge proportion of them, but in France a ruined castle or church would definitely not be in a field, and a farmer would certainly not appreciate seeing you cross their land to get there.

Anyway, we did cross and got to the Abbey, which I think is probably best appreciated from the top of the stairs (it is fabulous when you can get up there and have such a commanding view of the whole building). As is the case in most ruined churches, the floor is scattered with old slabs. None are as old as the Abbey itself, though. It was first erected by Sir Thomas Plunket in the 15th century, but apart from what is probably his own tomb (pictures coming), the slabs within the church itself are mostly from the 19th century. That is another custom that is fascinating to me. The church apparently started falling to ruins during the Cromwellian period, and yet it kept being used for burials (or started being used again, probably) well after it could never be a place of worship again. The most recent tombstone I saw within the church is that of the Knowles family. The last person listed on the stone died in 1951.

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Although it is a ruin, the Abbey is comparatively well preserved. In addition to the stairway we were able to climb and take pictures from, there was this fascinating tower ceiling and the beautiful altar window. Details on the walls also caught my eye, such as the symbol of the labyrinth (apparently it used to be on the floor and was moved to the wall, probably for better preservation), or an angel at the top of a column (very weathered, but the wings are still quite clear, and the position of its arms reminds me of Claddagh rings).

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Now, I know you are probably losing patience and waiting for the pictures of Thomas Plunket's tomb, so here they finally come. Plunket became Lord of Rathmore after his second mariage, with Marion Cruise (or Cruys), so his is a double-effigy tomb, of both Marion and himself. Unfortunately, her effigy is extremely weathered, and there isn't much to say about it other than mention the typically medieval stiffness of her dress. Thomas is much better-preserved. He is dressed in full armour, and almost every single detail of it is discernable, from the dirk at his belt, to the details of his chain mail, or even the articulations of his foot-wear... and the feet are resting on the body of his faithful dog.

There is at least one Plunkett descendant (with two Ts) burried in the Abbey, and that is Baroness Eugénie, who died in 1893 in Belgium. Her standing slab is set against the wall, very close to the altar and its impressive window. It seems the "Norman" connection of this important Anglo-Irish family was not forgotten, and Eugénie's name is purposefully spelled the French way on her stone. She died in Liège, in the French-speaking part of Belgium. For months I thought the accute accent on the stone (Liége) was a mistake on the part of an Irish stone-cutter used who was used to having the fada always leaning the same way, but it turns out this was the official spelling of the city's name until 1946.

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There are certainly many more treasures I haven't spotted at Rathmore Abbey, and I would not have time to go through every grave there, but I could not finish this without a mention of one of its most ancient (and unfortunately most weathered) treasures. This immediately stood out to me as probably what is left of a medieval High Cross. I would say the figure represented might ba an ecclesiastic, potentially the abbot of Rathmore? But it's hardly visible, and I actually don't know.