Muiredach, abbot of Monasterboice, 890-923 AD.; his life and surroundings . ing the head allusion has already been made. In the ends of the arms there are groups of figures. In that to theleft [34] are six soldiers, four of them armed respectively with bow, shield,sword, and spear. These are no doubt the soldiers assisting at the Cruci-fixion. At the other extremity [35] is a scene less easy to interpret. Itis usually explained as the soldiers watching the tomb, while two angels MONASTERBOICE 75 above bear up the soul to heaven, the latter being typified by an infantfigure supported in a cloth
Muiredach, abbot of Monasterboice, 890-923 AD.; his life and surroundings . ing the head allusion has already been made. In the ends of the arms there are groups of figures. In that to theleft [34] are six soldiers, four of them armed respectively with bow, shield,sword, and spear. These are no doubt the soldiers assisting at the Cruci-fixion. At the other extremity [35] is a scene less easy to interpret. Itis usually explained as the soldiers watching the tomb, while two angels MONASTERBOICE 75 above bear up the soul to heaven, the latter being typified by an infantfigure supported in a cloth. This way of representing the carrying upof the soul is common enough in monuments of the later Middle Ages,but somehow it does not strike me as either suitable to this particular scene,or congruous with the rest of the Cross. Neither is this the way in whichour sculptor was in the habit of representing the scene of the soldiers atthe tomb, as may be seen from the other Monasterboice Cross, and thecrosses at Clonmacnois, Kells, and Durrow. I have no alternative solution. 74, lines i8, 19, should read : The central figure, unlike most Early is only partially draped, is bound and nailed to the Cross, .... 32)-{Photograph by Mr. Crawford.) to propose, but I am sure that the last word has not been said on this partof the monument. We now turn to the other face, where the Last Judgment is presented[31]. In the centre stands Christ holding in one hand the Cross, in theother a sceptre with volutes on the head. This sceptre always appearsin representations of Our Lord in Glory on Irish work : it was probablysuggested by the budding of Aarons rod. But it is not confined to thisscene, or even to Christ. Thus a figure of St. Luke, in the Gospel ofSt. Chad, shows the same equipment. See fig. 10, No. 14. The staff-head, ihid., No. 14a, is not precisely analogous, in that its ends turn up ^ Compare the cross of Tcrmon Feichin, Plate IIIu. 74 MUIREDACH head appearing between His
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, bookidmuiredachabb, bookyear1914
