Clonmacnoise & Dublin Museums

Today we headed out to the coach around 9 AM. Out first stop was Clonmacnoise, which is a monastic village in the midlands of Ireland. Clonmacnoise is primarily in ruins, but is well kept for a village that dates back to around 500 A.D. We observed the beautiful monastic churches, crucifixes, tombs, and architecture and learned about the complex history of Ireland through its history. A large influence in the history stems from Norman invasions, as well as King Phillips XIII of England and Oliver Cromwell’s persecution of Catholics in Ireland.

We headed back on the road, stopping for lunch at a rest stop on the way. Kelly gave a brief lecture on the coach. When we got into Dublin, Leslie gave us a brief introduction to the city. We headed right to the National Museum of History and Archaeology where we focused on artifacts from the Bronze Age and Iron Age. The gold jewelry, chalices, and armor were so intricately hand made and well preserved. My favorite exhibit was on the “bog people.” These were preserved human bodies of Irish men who were sacrificed for religious purposes (it was rare to sacrifice a woman). Kelly explained the religious importance of the number 3; all of these men were “killed 3 times” – for example, hit on the head until unconscious, slit throat, and pierced in the body with a sword. It is the highest honor to be sacrificed to the gods, because it meant saving one’s own people.

We then headed to the National Museum of Ireland, just a few blocks away. This was a beautiful art museum with exhibits of both Irish and European art. I enjoyed the looking at all the paintings because, after taking Art History my freshman year, I know that not all paintings are meant to simply be aesthetically pleasing, but they often reflect a part of history, a culture, a religion, or how society should act. A lot of the paintings I looked at reflected Irish history in some way, or the unification of Irish identity with Catholicism.

Later that evening, we went out to dinner at O’Shea’s pub and actually managed to eat healthy. Then we went a pub that Kelly suggested for some good music. We had a great time and made friends with a group of French people, and even met some Americans who go to the same college as Claire and I back in the US.