Insular crozier - Knowledge (XXG)

231: 485: 501: 395: 517: 529: 336: 348: 425: 620: 605: 22: 888: 410: 635: 1116: 994: 590: 1009:, in a blocked doorway in Lismore castle in 1814. It is 115 cm high and built from wood, silver, gold, niello and glass. It is almost fully intact and in good condition with little modern reworking. Its crest contains a procession of animals that continues to a head at the end of the crook. The crook has three small, probably secondary (i.e. added later) reliquaries located in the animal heads and in the drop. The crook is further decorated on both sides with blue glass studs set in set in gold collars, and holding white and red 1097:, and two unidentified drops now in the British Museum. Their likeness to Irish examples is indicative of the close contact between Scottish and Irish craftsmen, and it is known that a number of Irish metalworkers settled in Scotland. The similarities include methods of construction and their style and decoration. The Scottish croziers are characterised by their angular crook shape with separate (attached) drops, with most dated to before the mid-11th century. The designs and patterns on the crooks are typical of the Irish or 437: 549:

plain copper-alloy. Four seems to have been the usual number, while those, such as the Clonmacnoise crozier, that have three are usually shorter overall and may have lost some of their length at some stage (probably when they were broken apart to make them easier to fold and thus hide from Viking and later Norman invaders). Knops were some times reused and attached to other croziers, the usual case for those that have five. Examples containing re-used knops include St. Dympna’s and St. Columba’s croziers.

324: 575: 2965: 560: 701:, and tin alloy and contains traces of inscriptions, but they are too worn to read. The crozier is in relatively good condition but was split in half during the late Middle Ages and recombined in the nineteenth century. It is the longest intact example at a height of 1.34m. Its wooden core is supported by three tubular copper-alloy shaft casings, which hold four shaft knops, a ferrule and the crook. The drop is lined with decorations of glass and 2801: 727: 1042: 773: 738:’s (also known as St. Colmcille (d. 597)) Crozier consist of highly decorated four-foot wooden shaft, now broken in two, that is covered with sheet bronze tubes decorated with a bronze knope lined with silver and gilt. Its foot and crook are both missing. The staff originates from the ninth century and a number of (often poor and crude) refurbishments date from the 12th century onwards. It is associated with 679: 53:) produced in Ireland and Scotland between 800 and 1200. Such items can be distinguished from mainland European types by their curved and open crooks, and drop (that is, the hollow box-like extension at the end of the crook). By the end of the 12th century, production of Irish croziers had largely ended, but examples continued to be reworked and added to throughout the 2693: 844:

core. The drop's metal casting is secondary and has an inset (or cavity) to hold a reliquary box, which is now filled with a small block of wood. However the reliquary box is slightly too small for the drop, and was probably also a later addition, likely to replace a similar, slightly larger fitting.

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The art historian Griffith Murray estimates that there is "physical evidence for at least thirty-one Insular-type crosiers from Ireland", and around 20 other fragments composed of shafts, knops and base (ferrule). In addition there are fragments of four eighth-century Insular crosiers in Scandinavia.

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The shaft has three richly decorated knopes, the largest of which contains a crest and measures 7.5 cm. The collar below the upper knope is made of copper alloy and contains relief designs of two large cat-like animals facing each other. The central knope is less decorated compared to the other

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This led to theories in the 19th century that the drops acted as containers for smaller relics of saints while the metal casing held the saint's original wooden staffs. However, these claims have been in doubt since the mid-20th century, and there is no evidence to support the theories. An exception

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or biconical and fully wrap around the shaft. Typical decorative elements include inserted triangular and rectangular plaques ornamented with inlaid silver, interlace, glass studs, and enamel. The individual knopes are usually placed equally distant from each other and separated by lengths of open,

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of his flock and was popular from the early days of Christianity. The first known mention of the attribute in relation to Ireland is from 431 CE, and in the context of the conversion of the Irish population to Christianity. The first Insular staffs were produced in the 9th and 10th centuries during

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at either side of the base of the crook. The openwork crest was cast and contains a row of five crouched dog-like animals. The zoomorphic and interlace patterns are in the Irish Ringerike style and bear a strong resemblance to late 11th century additions to the Bearnan Chulain bell shrine, and the

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The barrel shaped knope on the upper shaft is decorated with knotted interlace, and holds now empty settings that once contained studs, most likely of amber. Although this section is the earliest metalwork component, it was later filed down to accommodate both later embellishments and repair work.

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In all Insular examples, the upper and middle knopes are separately cast, while (excepting the Clonmacnoise Crosier) the lower knope is fused with the ferrule. The designs on the upper knop of the Clonmacnoise and River Laune croziers are similar to those at the lower portion of their crooks. Both

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Insular croziers were probably made in workshops specialising in metal inlay techniques. The art historian Griffin Murray speculates that the master craftsman behind the Clonmacnoise Crozier may also be responsible for two other extant examples. The croziers vary in size, material, and amount and

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was built in three phases. The earliest metalwork occurred during the late 9th or early 10 century, with further adornment occurring during the early 11th and early 12th centuries. The first phase is represented by the wooden core, and copper lined tubing, four closing strips, three copper alloy

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Like many Irish medieval religious objects, particularly shrines, some of the croziers (Irish: Baculus) were built in single phases, while others were first built in the 9th century and added to or reworked across the 10th and 11th centuries. Many of the croziers were held over the centuries by

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The River Laune Crozier is of especially fine workmanship and unusual in that its metalwork is mostly of silver rather than the more typical copper alloy. Four panels contain elaborate gilded filigree. It is 111.5 cm in length, while the hook is 17 cm wide. The crook is from a single

1137:, central Scotland. Only the crook survives; the staff was lost at an unknown date. Sometime around the late 13th century the crook was encased in the Coigreach (or Quigrich), a crosier-shrine of similar size and form built as a protective case for the crook, and made from silver, gold and 1024:("Pray for Nechtain, craftsman, who made this object"). Nechtain placed the inscriptions in a very narrow space and so had to use abbreviations, and in some instances omitted a letter (for example "Niall" is spelled with only one "l", and the central "d" is missing from "Lasandernad"). 856:

and one blue glass stone. The staff contains a number of secondary nail holes, indicating that it may have been "dismantled and repaired several times in the past". St. Mel's Crozier is dated based on the style of the zoomorphic designs, which are similar to those on the Kells Crozier.

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knopes, the crook, openwork crest and zoomorphic ornamentation. Later embellishments include the silver plates lining the crook, the drop (10th century), and the semi-precious stones (since lost) and niello-inlaid spirals influenced by the Ringerike style added in the 11th century.

484: 164:." Although the croziers are often associated with early Christian Irish saints from the 600-800 era, it is not thought that the wooden cores of the staffs date from that period, although some (but not all) historians think that the drops may have been constructed as containers for 371:

drop plate, studded with jewels, as with the Lismore Crook. The plaques often have an animal (or, less often human) head at the top, below which a separate structure (known as the drop-plate) was attached. Based on carvings on a number of high crosses, including that at Ahenny,

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The designs on the crook of the Clonmacnoise Crozier are in the Ringerike style and include snake-like animals with ribbon-shaped bodies arranged, according to art historian Patrick Wallace, "in tightly woven knots", while the crest contains a series of "gripping dogs". The

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periods. Although many of the croziers are associated with 5th- and 6th-century saints, the objects were not made until long after the saints had died. A majority originate from around the 9th century, with a number further embellished between the 11th and 13th centuries.

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in 1314. Later it was thought to be able to heal people and animals, and under the ownership of its hereditary keepers the Dewars of Glendochart, acted as a ceremonial object for oaths of loyalty and dispute settlement, mostly related to the recovery of stolen cattle.

814:), which, roughly translated, asks for prayers for Cúduilig (or Cū Duilig) and Maelfinnén (or Máel Finnén). However, as neither have been conclusively associated with historical figures, there is some doubt as to the location of origin. It is in the collection of the 500: 958:

describes it as "probably broadly contemporary with the earliest stone church on the island and obviously relates a period of wealth and investment in the monastery at the time. It was of great significance to the community, as...the staff of office of the

528: 459:, sheeted with metal tubing, and often millefiori discs and inlaid glass bosses. This core was used to support the weight of the hook, given that the metal casing is usually comparatively thin. The tubing was typically fitted with metal plating, usually of 380:, an element that is, apart from zoomorphism, otherwise almost entirely absent in Insular metalwork. While a number of examples retain their precious metal jewels, in general most of the Insular crozier have lost their drops, presumably through plunder. 1060:. The crozier is 13.5 cm high and 15.5 cm wide, and decorated with round blue glass studs and white and red millefiori insets. Snake-like animals are arranged in interlocked rows along the sides, and there are large animal heads in high 516: 394: 301:(portraying humans as non-human animals) figures. The animal designs in the earliest example are depicted in a naturalistic manner, while many of the later examples bear influence from both the Ringerike and later Urnes styles of 860:

While well preserved (a number of the plates were damaged, and its last major cleaning and refurbishment was carried out between 1971 and 1972) and studied to that point, the crozier was "almost entirely destroyed" in 2009 when

475:) and a binding strip, while the drop (the plate at the front end of the hook) was attached separately. In some Romanesque crosiers, the crest is on the same plate as the crook, with only the drop as a separate attachment. 261:

Only five croziers have inscriptions. Of these, only the Kells and Lismore Croziers have the lettering that is still legible. The Lismore Crozier contains both the name of the smith (Nechtan), and the name of the Bishop of

1180:") dates from c. 730 and is in very poor condition having lost most of its metal casing and suffered damage to both its crook and ferrule. It remains in the possession of the Duke of Argyll, its hereditary keeper, on the 376:, it can be assumed that the clerics held the staffs with both hands at chest height, with the drop facing outward. As thus the most visible portion of the crozier, the drops were the obvious focus point for 746:, founded by Columba in the 6th century, and following the dissolution of the abbey, was kept by its hereditary keepers, the Mac Geoghegan family, until the mid-19th century, and was in the ownership of the 553:

the Clonmacnoise and St. Columba’s croziers have decorative collars below their upper knopes. Knops are not unique to Insular croziers and can be found in many contemporary and later European examples.

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being both the oldest and 1.33 meters the longest. The major components are the shaft or staff and attached base, crook, and knop, with the crook, knop and ferrule being the most decorated elements.

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The shafts of the extant croziers are lined with between three and five decorative knops; that is separately cast, protruding barrel-shaped metal fittings. They all cast in bronze and are either

903:) is fully intact and considered one of the finest surviving Irish examples, alongside those found at Clonmacnoise and Lismore. It was discovered in 1867 deposited in the bed of the Launein the 1016:

Inscriptions on the metalwork record that it was produced by "Nechtain the craftsman" and commissioned by Niall mac Meic Aeducain, a bishop of Lismore who died in 1113. The inscription read

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While a number of Scottish Insular croziers ("quigrichs") survive, there are only six extant early Christian examples (the Bachul Mor fragment, the crosier of St Fillan, two drops found at

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and handed on from one abbot to the next. It symbolised the power of the founding saint of the monastery, St Finian, and by association the power of the abbot and the monastery itself,"

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two but has inlay bands and silver lining. The lower knope contains decorations, including blue glass studs. The monastery at Clonmacnoise is also the location where the 8th century

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noted how, in Ireland, relics of saints "used to be carried to distant places on solemn occasions, in order that rival chieftains might be sworn upon them, so much that the word

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and St. Mel's Crozier, were taken to the National Museum of Ireland for assessment and restoration, although such was the extent of devastation that many were "beyond help".

852:. Today, the wooden core can be divided into three parts now lined with nail holes. The collar knope is designed to hold eight decorative stones, of which three survive: two 2081: 1834: 1377: 2437:. "Treasures of Ireland: Catalogue entries, Late Bronze Age and Iron Age Antiquities". Treasures of Ireland: Irish Art 3000 BC – 1500 AD. Dublin: Royal Irish Academy, 1983 2001: 436: 2142: 1141:

and dates from the late 13th century, with additions from the 14th or 15th centuries. The Coigreach was rediscovered in the mid-19th century by the archaeologist

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and animal designs. As of 2014, fewer than 20 surviving fully intact examples were known, in addition to 60 fragments in various states of completeness.

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The majority of Insular crozier's crooks terminate with a flat drop, typically formed from an inserted and functional metal plaque, and a highly ornate

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The Clonmacnoise Crozieris is often described as the finest of the surviving examples in both craftmanship and design. Thought to be associated with

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As undoubted symbols of wealth and power, the croziers may have at times been used for solemnising treaties, swearing oaths, or even as battle

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periods of political and religious upheaval in Ireland, when authority was often seen as needing to be made explicit, including during the

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It is dated to the late 11th century and is not thought to have been reworked. Its origin is uncertain; it is likely to have been made at

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It is unknown exactly what their function in Irish medieval society was, but they were probably of ceremonial use, and some may have held

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Later additions include the remnants of downwards farcing animal head on the crest positioned as a protruding wing from the main shaft.

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Recovery of Diocesan Museum Artefacts: Statement Issued on behalf of the Very Rev. Colm O’reilly, D.D., Bishop Of Ardagh and Clonmacnois

754:, it did not receive extensive scholarly examination until its inclusion in Column Burke's 1997 "Studies in the Cult of Saint Columba". 156:

points out, at the time the "most prestigious of all Irish relics and the one most frequently mentioned down the years was ... the

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who commissioned it, while the Kells Crozier names the smith as Conduilig, and its commissioner as Malfinnen, Archbishop of Leinster.

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Cozier fragment of unknown provenance, c. 1110. Although now almost completely lost it would have been one of the finest examples.

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Oddy, W. A.; McIntyre, I. M. "St. Mel's Crozier: Technical Examination and Report on Conservation and Restoration in 1971-2".

1056:, it is dated to the late 11th century. It is 97 cm long, and is formed from wood, copper-alloy, silver, niello, glass and 3261: 3231: 3189: 1078: 559: 2376: 2246: 895:, showing the row of tightly bound zoomorphic and interlace snakes, depicted in the ribbon-like 10th century Ringerike style. 3249: 1129:

dates from the 8th century, with additions in the Romanesque period. It is s traditionally associated with the Irish monk

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The Kells Crozier, at 133 cm, is unusually long, however some of this is due to later additions. The art historian

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It is one of the earliest known European croziers and was extensively cleaned and refurbished in the late 20th century.

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Stuart, John. "Historical Notices of St. Fillan's Crozier, and of the Devotion of King Robert Bruce to St. Fillan".

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enamel. The drop contains a modern inscription, probably 18th or 19th century, recording that it was once owned by

694: 2760: 836:, Saint Mel's Crozier dates from the 10th or 11th centuries. The shaft is 84 cm long. The crook is made from 721: 581: 491: 3159: 2879: 2711: 1053: 848:

The crozier is built from 14 separate metallic parts, with the wooden core lined with silver, gilding, glass and

263: 183:, which means enshrined relics, came to denote both a relic and an oath." The annuals recounting the life of St. 2821: 1115: 993: 2268: 1142: 750:

before 1850. Although considered to have once been one of the finest croziers, and a relic of one of Ireland's

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The crooks are positioned on top of the shaft and are typically highly decorated with silver, gold, glass, and

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On an Irish Crozier, with Early Metal Crook, Probably the Missing "Crozier of St. Ciaran," of Clonmacnoise

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Bourke, Cormac. "A Crozier and Bell from Inishmurray and Their Place in Ninth-Century Irish Archaeology".

176: 3449: 1153: 305:. Some of the Ringerike style animals bear close resemblance to figures on the margins of ninth-century 862: 3309: 3219: 3117: 3069: 2989: 2872: 2784: 2772: 2381: 1046: 1036: 924: 827: 625: 443: 239: 101: 26: 388:, where two small relics and a linen cloth were found inside the crook during a 1966 refurbishment. 3429: 3373: 3225: 3183: 3123: 3051: 2944: 2789: 2559:

Making and Meaning in Insular Art: Proceedings of the Fifth International Conference on Insular Art

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The shaft gets progressively narrower after the lowest knope before tapering to spike or ferrule.

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suggests that because so many parts were replaced, the crozier may "have suffered 'profanation' (

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Croziers were symbols of office for bishops or abbots. Their form is based on the idea of the

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Murray, Griffin. "The Medieval Treasures of County Kerry".Tralee: Kerry County Museum, 2010.

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During a 1966 refurbishment, two small relics and a linen cloth were found inside the crook.

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The earliest known Irish crozier, dating to 596 AD and entirely made of wood, was found in a

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Colmcille 1500 Lecture Series: St Columba’s crosier: power and devotion in medieval Ireland

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The Lismore crozier is dated to 1100 AD and was rediscovered, along with the 15th century

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or a gun, before establishing it as a "curious handstick." It was first exhibited at the

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quality of decoration. A typical length is 1.2 meters, with the Prosperous Crozier from

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Michelli, Perette. "Four Scottish crosiers and their relation to the Irish tradition".

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Clerics and Clansmen: The Diocese of Argyll Between the Twelfth and Sixteenth Centuries

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Henry, Françoise. "Around an Inscription: The Cross of the Scriptures at Clonmacnois".

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The unusually elongated crook of the late 9th or early 10th century Prosperous Crozier

3423: 3255: 3165: 3141: 3081: 3063: 2949: 2914: 2754: 2325: 1196: 1133:(Gaelic: Fáelán or "little wolf"), who lived in the eighth century at Glendochart in 1094: 939: 866: 788: 777: 767: 566: 456: 306: 211: 161: 105: 93:) plates were attached. The crooks tend to be highly decorated with elements such as 1917: 678: 3403: 3378: 3105: 3057: 1138: 1074: 912: 870: 751: 743: 739: 472: 354: 219: 188: 2557:

Murray, Griffin. "Insular-type crosiers: their construction and characteristics".

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The history and provenance of two early medieval crosiers ascribed to Clonmacnoise

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hereditary keepers, usually generations of a local family, until re-discovered by

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