We proceed briefly to notice these various heads in the same order. "Whatever difficulty," says the author, "I may have had to encounter in proving from historical evidences that the most ancient Irish churches were usually, if not always, of stone and lime cement; I shall, I think, have none in establishing this fact, from the characteristic features of the existing remains of the churches themselves; features which, as far as I know, have an antiquity of character rarely to be seen, or at least not hitherto noticed in any of the Christian edifices now remaining in any other country of Europe, and which to the intelligent architectural antiquary will carry a conviction of their remote age, superior to any written historical evidences relative to them now to be found." The ancient Irish churches were of small size, their greatest length rarely exceeding 80 feet, and being usually not more than 60; a remarkable instance, the great church of Armagh, extending to 140 feet. We have before noticed the churches of Cornwall, which form the subjects of Mr. Haslam's work on Peranzabuloe, (reviewed in Feb. Mag. 1845, p. 163,) a class of structures evidently possessing a common origin with the Irish examples referred to in this work. The details of the architecture of the Irish examples is very extraordinary; the doorways are pyramidal, like the openings in Egyptian and Greek buildings; the jambs, lintels, and masonry Cyclopean. An example is given in the accompanying engraving PLATE II. which represents the doorway of the church at Glendalough, popularly called Our Lady's Church, said to be erected by St. Kevin, and to be his bu-rial place, " so that the erection may be fairly referred to the middle of the 6th century." We have selected it in preference to other examples perhaps of an earlier date, and possessing even GENT. MAG. VOL. XXV. more striking features, on account of its superior finish, and the proofs of skill which it affords at so early a peperiod. The progress of the history leads us from these examples to the arched doorway, which is remarkable for retaining the inwardly inclining jambs, until we arrive at a mode of architecture which of late has attracted much notice, "the long and short style," which, says Mr. Petrie, "is very generally seen in the ancient churches of Ireland;" it, however, is rarely found, except in the sides of the doorways and windows, though a few well-marked examples of it occur, as quoins to the external angles of churches of undoubted antiquity; as in the example taken from the older of the two churches of Monasterboise, in the county of Louth, which the author considers to be the original church of the place, and which exactly resembles the English specimens of their mode of building and is manifestly the offspring of the rude style just described. We now come to a more ornamented style of architecture, about which less scope for controversy exists than with that of preceding ages; and here we cannot go on our way with Mr. Petrie so cordially as we have hitherto done. The Cyclopean doorway, which we have seen, in the progress of improvement, has changed its lintel for an arch, has at length grown into one of those ornamented doorways which are known in this country by the denomination of "Norman," being in truth only late Roman architecture, modified by the inventions of Byzantine and Lombardic architects. That specimens of this style in Ireland should possess a peculiar, and, if we may be allowed the term, a national character, is no more than we see the same style possessing in every other country. The Romanesque doorways of England and Normandy have each their generic character, and so has every example of the same style throughout Europe; there is even a peculiar stamp in the Norman of particular districts in England; for instance, Herefordshire, where ancient churches exhibit detail of a similar character to that shown in the next engraving; and that Ireland, insulated as it was, should in its architecture exhibit a character of its own, is not at all surprising; but 2 A when we see this peculiar character accompanied by general features common to other Romanesque specimens wherever they may be found, we must own we do not feel at liberty to draw a conclusion from this circumstance that the Norman architecture of Ireland (we only use the phrase for the sake of identity) is of older date than the same style in this country: thus the doorway of the round tower of Timahoe retains its pyramidalformed opening and inclining jambs, its peculiar Irish features; but, in common with the Byzantine, Lombardic, or Norman of every country, it shows a capital enriched with sculpture, its zigzags, and its recessed arches. If a capital similarly enriched with the following example was seen in an English church, its date judging from other specimens would not be fixed earlier than the reign of Henry I. ; it would not be contended, at most, that it was prior to the Norman conquest, certainly not of the tenth century. The surest guide to the age of an architectural specimen is afforded by the investigation of contemporary examples, which, however modified in minor details by local circumstances, are, wherever they are found, seen to resemble each other in their main features. We cannot, upon any principles of archæological evidence, attribute the round window given at p. 244, which so closely approaches to Patricksbourn and Barfreston (both in Kent) in its general style, and which even finds a parallel in Peterborough, to the middle of the eighth century. We have further a number of examples of architecture of the same stamp, which, for the sake of distinction alone, we term Norman, using the phrase only that it may point to the period at which the works were executed. The ornamented chancel arch so clearly shows a period coeval with our Norman style, that we should attribute without hesitation to that date the chancel at least and the round tower of Teampull Finghin, Fineens Church at Clonmacnoise. The plan of this edifice (given below) proves that one round tower at least was certainly constructed with and attached to a church. The doorway of Templeconor is a plain arched opening, with inposts of a decided Roman stamp, and has far less of the Norman character about it than the ornamented specimens to which we have alluded: this doorway is referred to the early part of the eleventh century; why should the enriched and sculptured examples be given to an earlier period? "That I may possibly err," Mr. Petrie adds, in his conclusion of the section on churches, " in the opinions offered as to the age of some of the examples of decorated architecture which I have adduced, [i. e. decorated Norman, and not Rickman's decorated,] I have already freely acknowledged, but the subject is now at least submitted to the learned on new grounds, and whatever may be their ultimate decision upon a matter so interesting, as illustrating the history of ecclesiastical architecture in Europe, my object must necessarily be attained that of leading others to the discovery of truth-however I may myself have failed occasionally to see it." p. 343. The author, who states his opinions with so much fairness, will not take offence at our differing with him on this question; the whole section on churches is so valuable, and marked with so much patient research, that, even if too early a date may be assigned to any particular specimen, there is so much excellent matter in it that it will not fail to prove of the utmost utility and importance to the student of Irish archæology. ORATORIES form the next subject in the above enumeration. We pass over the author's disquisition on the etymology of the Irish word used to designate these smaller churches, from which it appears they were originally of wood, though afterwards erected with stone, differing only from churches in respect of size, and generally assimilating with the small churches in Cornwall, which were noticed in Mr. Haslam's work before referred to, however they might be altered by the -subsequent addition of chancels and bell towers. We need not further notice these structures, as their architecture is not different from that of the churches. BELFRIES form the third division of ecclesiastical antiquities, which leads us to the more immediate subject of the work. The following are four classes of facts which Mr. Petrie says will be proved by the descriptive notices of the ancient churches and towers which will constitute the (forthcoming) third part of his inquiry. 1. That the towers are never found unconnected with ancient ecclesiastical foundations. 2. That their architectural styles exhibit no features or peculiarities not equally found in the original church with which they were locally connected, where it remains. 3. That on several of them Christian emblems are observable; and that others display in their details a style of architecture universally acknowledged to belong to Christian times. 4. That they possess invariably architectural features not found in any buildings in Ireland ascertained to be of Pagan times. A view of Devenish tower as a perfect and finished example of the class is given; from this it appears they were furnished with pyramidal cappings, the usual finish of almost every Norman tower. That they were also places of security is evidently shewn by the strong double doors of the tower of Roscrea, and by a variety of extracts from ancient writings. The author also shews that the erection of some of the round towers was as late as the twelfth century; which is not only proved by the architecture, but corroborated by records shewing the completion of some in 1124, and even as late as 1238, the date of at least one tower, the period of the construction of which (at Annadown) has been preserved. Their Christian origin is evinced by the holy cross being carved on the lintels of their openings, as on a window at Antrim, "a cross in a wheel," p. 403, and other examples; as well as in relievo of the crucifixion on the key stone of the door of the round tower of Donaghmore." p. 409. a The architecture of the towers, as we before observed with regard to churches, is the Romanesque, marked with the peculiarity of the inclining jamb; one of the plainest, but at the same time one of the most regular arches, which is decidedly Roman in its character, is seen in the door of the greater tower of Clonmacnoise, which will not, we think, warrant any claim to greater antiquity than the many similar arches found alike in our own |