St Nahi's Anglican Church, Dundrum - surprisingly fraught with national history.

In the summer 2016, I spent a month in Dublin to search the National Archives. I was staying in Stepaside Village (of Fenian fame) and taking the Luas everyday. From the window I kept seeing this small church and graveyard, and of course how could I resist such a view?

Saint Nahi was one of the earliest Irish saints, and a Church is thought to have stood in this place since at least 800 CE. The current church was consecrated in 1760 and its graveyard is thought to contain 1,200 graves.

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Among these, two "Celtic" crosses stood out to me. The first one not so much for its carved motifs, which are fairly simple (although very aptly executed), but because it looked different from the usual Celtic Renaissance type of cross. It is shorter, somewhat stout compared to the usually tall graveyard crosses, and that characteristic reminded me of the North Medieval cross at Ahenny, Co, Tipperary (whose pillar is proportionately even shorter). The cross is so ornate the central boss hardly stands out at all, but artistically it is the most interesting part. Gaelic art was highly symbolic, and on medieval crosses the central boss would represent Christ, and more specifically the wound in his side, while the four other bosses represented the four points of the cross. Here there is only the one, central boss, but interestingly it is made up of four ornamental loops, with a tiny central boss. Moreover, how exactly these parts are delimited is unclear, which is also typical of Gaelic art: taken as a whole, they form a never-ending ribbon with four loops, but they could also be seen as individually forming simple spirals, or - if paired - palmettes (sort of an incomplete heart-shaped motif). This practice of combining motifs to allow for different perceptions of the same object is called the Cheshire Cat Style. It is typical of Celtic art of the La Tène era (named after a site in Switzerland), which was perpetuated in Ireland and flourished here in the early medieval period.

The second cross, dedicated to a man named John Gallagher who died in 1926 has the more classic, slender look typical of Celtic Renaissance crosses, and it has a much greater variety of motifs. All of the five bosses are present. The larger, central boss displays the IHS monogram symbolising Jesus, while the four smaller ones are ornate with never-ending ribbons, each looking slightly different. But it is the pillar I was most interested in. The bottom panel would be familiar to anyone who has visited Irish graveyards and cemeteries, as it is a recurring motif of Renaissance crosses. Under the influence of Gaelic culture, Irish early Christian art avoided figurative representation, and when it appeared it would alsmost exclusively represent fantastic animals (or cats), most often hidden within the Cheshire Cat style. The easily identifiable heads represented here definitely belong to fantastic serpent(s) whose bodies (or single body? even this is unclear) intermingle with never-ending ribbons. The figure 8 is repeated at different levels in the composition. Although not part of the Gaelic repertoire, the 8 and its association with the infinite symbol fit in well. Just above the serpents, five small bosses reiterate the symbols of the crucifixion, and are probably the most typically Gaelic combination on this cross. A triskele is represented on each boss, giving a dynamic, moving feeling to it. All four of the outer bosses are joined by spirals, and together they form a quadriskele, and all these spirals combined give the overall motif an almost whirwind effect which is executed with great skill here. Irish medieval art originated in metal craftsmanship, and the influence of metal work is particularly evident in such sculptures, where the hollowed out parts contribute to the overall dynamic just as much as the relief does.

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Although of a very different style from the Renaissance crosses, three other headstones attracted my attention. To the left, I was interested in the symbolism caried by the four different plants surrounding the central sacred heart: the shamrock, an obvious reference to Ireland and Irish identity; the vine, most probably a biblical reference (Jesus being "the true vine"); the ivy, so typical of Irish graveyards; and what I believe to be forget-me-nots (I don't think I need to explain). The central headstone is simply adorned with shamrock, with a central representation of a particularly peaceful-looking Jesus, very different from the more common crucifixions. Finally, to the right is a particularly elaborate representation of Mary in full length, topped by two winged souls. You need to click on the picture to expand it and notice that, even though she seems to be floating, there is actually a snake under her foot, sin being defeated (I guess).

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Finally, my greatest surprise during this visit was for an Anglican graveyard to hold so many republican graves, including several from the 1920s. Remember, I was visiting in the summer 2016, so with the 1916 centenary going on, most (though not all) republican graves were pretty easily spotted, with their tricolour ornaments:

The first grave to the left is very sobre and bears no name, but the tricolour flag leaning on it marked it as republican. In the second picture, two different headstones which bear the same surname (Lee) are marked with republican wreaths. In the grave to the front lies Joseph Lee, of Rathfarnam (died 1932) as well as his wife Elizabeth, and a Sarah whose surname I could not decipher. In the second grave also lies a Joseph Lee, but of Terenure (died 1944) with his wife Elizabeth (died 1948). Hugh Lee (died 1964) was probably their son and was buried there with his wife Mary (died 1962). Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find any further information about the Lees or details of their participation in Irish republicanism. The last grave, inscribed in Irish, is that of Republican volunteer D (?)oncan Mac Suibhne of the Dublin Brigade, who died in the Civil War in 1922 (does it say July 5th?). I identified one last grave of a Christopher Reynolds who "died for Ireland" in April 1921, according to the inscription chosen by his mother. There was no other specification, and no sign of republican commemorations either, which makes me wonder whether he could have "died for Ireland" by fighting on the British side of the War of Independence.

Among the members of the Burke family buried under this slab is James Burke. There is no sign that he participated in republican activities, yet his death is also related to a major event in Irish history - the Croke Park "Bloody Sunday" of November 1920. He was one of the 14 people who died in the stadium that day when members of the Royal Irish Constabulary opened fire on civilians attending a GAA game, in retaliation for IRA assassinations earlier the same day. The stone must have been updated some time after James Burke's death though, and the stone cutter mistakenly dated the event in 1921.

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I could not conclude this post without mentioning those who to me were the most high-profile of all people buried at St Nahi's: Elizabeth "Lolly" Corbett Yeats and Susan "Lily" Mary Yeats, daughters of painter John Butler and sisters of world-famous poet William Butler Yeats. But they were much more than just daughters or sisters - they were artists and activists themselves. They were both raised in England, where they grew close to the Morris family and the Arts and Crafts movement (if you don't know about William Morris I'm happy for you that you have that wonderful discovery ahead of you). Lolly was an artist and an art teacher, and Lily trained as an embroiderer with May Morris. In 1900, after Lolly had trained with the Women's Printing Society in London, they moved to Dublin and started the local Arts and Crafts movement. They created Dun Emer Press (named after Cú Chulainn's wife, Emer) with Evelyn Gleeson and published their brother's works. But Dun Emer was more than simply a printing and publishing press, their ambition was to employ and train young women in the arts and crafts. Their relationship with Gleeson was strained, and in 1908 they split and created Cuala Press (Cuala is the Gaelic name for the South Dublin area), which played a central part in publishing Celtic Revival authors. They also apparently designed and produced needlework to decorate Saint Nahi's, unfortunately I was unable to go in and have a look.

Given their highly artistic profile, I was surprised that their tombstone was so unadorned, and also quite unkempt despite their major role in Irish cultural history. It is also interesting that, having no husbands, their father's name had to be mentioned for their names to make sense. You'd think their personal achievements might have been enough.