Link Correction Bronze Age sword found in a Co. Meath Bog 

The sword blade measures c. 40 cm in length and is fashioned out of bronze. The handle of the ‘rapier’, which was attached via two rivet holes, was probably made from an organic substance such as wood or bone and this no longer survives.

Sorry I had an error in the link code for the above tidbit last month. The link should work now. We also had a question about the term “rapier” as that seems like an anachronistic term. What sword historians call a rapier didn’t appear until the 1500’s. Use of the term for this artifact was also challenged by someone on the Facebook page of the National Museum of Ireland. But It appears that “rapier” is a term also used by archeologists for this type of short, narrow stabbing blade which dates from the Middle Bronze Age of Ireland.

High School Teen Disproves Pofessor’s Claim

-“No Irish Need Apply” not a myth

Solomon’s (Scottish) Temple?

After the Scottish Protestant Reformation of 1560 the last mention of a Catholic service in 

the chapel of Stirling Castle was in 1566 for the baptism of the future James VI. In 1568 the chapel was stripped of it‘s “idolatrous” Catholic furnishings and by 1583 it had fell into such disuse and disrepair that the royal Master of Works suggested to the king that it be demolished and replaced by a new chapel that would be set back to enlarge and square off the “close” on which the old chapel was located. Thus, in 1594 a new chapel was build for the occasion of the baptism of James VI’s new heir Prince Henry. It was an opportunity to impress an international audience that the James and his son were suitable heirs to the aging Queen Elizabeth of England. The new chapel was build in a mere seven months and acheived the goal of representing the Scottish royal aspirations. It is described as the earliest “Renaissance church” built in England with triumphal arch framing the main entrance and flanked by Italianate windows.

In addition, there is a contemporary letter referring to the chapel as “Solomon’s Temple” which has contributed to a theory that its design was intended as a Renaissance copy of the Biblical Solomon’s Temple.

The primary description of the original Solomon’s Temple appears in the First Book of Kings (1 Kings 6), and a summary appears in the Second Book of Chronicles. It is describe as 60 cubits long by 20 cubits wide and  30 cubits high.  (A cubit was based on the length of a man’s forearm from the elbow to end of the finger tips, or about 18 inches, or 46 cm in Biblical times.) The temple also had a vestibule at the east end with was either 20 x 10 cubits, or 20 cubits square depending on the Bible verses mentioned above. In English units the description in 1 Kings would come to about 105 feet long 30 wide and 45 high if one includes the “porch”. The  measurements of the chapel at Stirling Castle are 103.96′ x 29.63′ x 33.33′ which certainly seems in the same ball park as the Biblical description -especially given the variations in standard measurments over time.
There are also a couple of internal correlations regarding internal dimensions that have been made. The raised platform at the west end is said to correspond to the area of the Holy of Holies in the Solomon’s Temple. Aso the depth of the back wall of the undeground chambers under the east end of the chapel matches the 10 cubit measurement of the porch of the Temple form 1 Kings.

The chapel windows may not match the description in the Bible which is of “slanting windows” in Hebrew, or a interpretation of the Greek translation was described at “windows broad without and narrow within”. But they may coincide with an illustration of the Temple of Solomon from a 16th century Bible which is believed to have accidentally confused a description of his palace with the temple. The Chapel door also lacks the free-standing bronze pillars named Jochim and Boaz that are described as flanking the enterance to the ancient temple. But the double pillar design on the chapel does seem to match a portrayal of the temple on ancient coins. 

It is curious that the main door opens on the long side of the chapel rather than at one end as one usually sees with churches. But the Latin Vulgate describes a “door for the middle side, was on the right hand of the house”. In context, this was actually a minor door with access to the middle of the temple, but there is a later rich tradition of equating this side door with the spear wound in the right side of Christ.

While it was certainly not uncommon to base churches or chapels on the Temple of Solomon, beyond the physical symbolism, there are also several contemporary examples comparing the reign of James VI to that of Solomon. As early as 1579 for the entrance of James into Edinburgh at the start of his reign there was presented a tableau depicting the Judgement of Solomon. The Poel Alexander Montgomerie also described James as “A Salomon for richt(right) and judgement” in 1580. Furthermore, another tableau was presented at the after the coronation of Queen Anne comparing James and Anne to the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon. Finally, in a letter regarding the planned baptism of James VI’s heir the Scottish courtier John Colville specifically mentions that “the great Temple of Solomon” could not be completed in time for the event. So it seems pretty reasonable that the chapel was intended to represent the Temple of Solomon and prossibly to symbolically reinforce the reign of the king and his heir

As such, it appears the chapel also has connections to early history of Freemasonry that are apart from  sily conspiracy theories. It is fairly well known that the fraternal order uses symbolism from the building of Solomon’s Temple, so I won’t go into that here, but there are some interesting practical connections: William Shaw was the royal Master of Works under James VI starting in 1583. Shaw is also know for writing the Statutes and Ordinances in 1598 which described the regulations regarding how masons’ apprenticeships worked, and how the craft was to be organized. His Second Statutes (1599) also touched some health and safety matters and specifically lists Stirling as the location of one of three primary lodges of masons in Scotland. In 1637 the Master of Works and General Warden of Scottish masons, Sir Anthony Alexander held a “court” at Stirling to discuss matters regarding of the trade of masonry. His brother Henry, later third Earl of Stirling, followed in Alexander’s footsteps as Master of Works and held a similar court in 1638.

The article I summarized this from does get a little into a conspiracy end of things however. The authors suggest that mention of the symbolism surrounding the design of the chapel may have been left out of things like the plans for the royal baptism in a “deliberate attempt to keep it secret because of the chapel’s pivotal role in the foundation of modern Freemasonry.” I’m a bit skeptical about that. I wonder if it was more a matter that the symbolism in the construction of chapels and churches was well enough known, at least among scholars, that it was a detail that could easily be glossed over. And if Shaw names Stirling specifically as a primary lodge, or meeting place for working/operative masons how much of a “secret” could it have been?

Bronze Age sword found in a Co. Meath Bog

The sword blade measures c. 40 cm in length and is fashioned out of bronze. The handle of the ‘rapier’, which was attached via two rivet holes, was probably made from an organic substance such as wood or bone and this no longer survives.

“Celtic” Tarot?

Some notes for something I was working on a while ago…

     For some reason Tarot games never became common in English-speaking countries, as a result, many people are only aware of their modern use as fortune telling tools. Tarot cards seem to first appear in Italy around the 1430’s under the names trionfi, or triumphi from which we likely get the term “trumps.” Tarot games seem to have first spread north to Switzerland in the early 1500’s. Their period of greatest dissemination was from about 1650 to 1750 when a French version of the game seems to have become predominant, and spread to become popular in areas of Germany, Italy and Eastern Europe. The 17th century was also the period when we see the first works recounting the rules of Tarot games, as well as the first published compilations of rules for standard card games.

     As for fortune telling, game historians contend that modern-style cartomancy became common after about 1765, and probably developed out of Solitaire, or “Patience” card games, which started becoming popular at about that time and included novelty fortune-telling aspects. The first book written on fortune telling with cards actually described using a standard deck, not Tarot Cards. However, occultists have argued that cartomancy is much older, and that the Tarot, or at least the Tarot trumps, have origins in ancient mystical knowledge.
     
     The popular link of Tarot cards with mysticism began after 1781 when a French pseudo-scholar, Antoine Court de Gebelin, advanced a theory that the trumps were survivals from a long-lost ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic work that he believed had contained a synthesis of all human knowledge. The fact that hieroglyphics were totally unreadable until after his death apparently did not deter him. (The Rosetta Stone was discovered in 1791, and provided the first modern translations of Egyptian hieroglyphics.) Court de Gebelin’s claimed there was once a golden civilization when all men shared common language, customs, culture and religion. He believed that knowledge of this golden age could be reconstructed through allegorical interpretation of information preserved in the images of the trumps. His theories are summarized best in the book A Wicked Pack of Cards, The Origins of the Occult Tarot, Court de Gebelin’s work: “is rendered utterly worthless by it’s authors disdain for serious evidence, and for any process of rational demonstration.”

      Modern scholars have shown that the works of Court de Gebelin, and a contemporary who promoted a similar theory of are filled with guesswork and plain invention -probably fueled by an 18th century mania for things Egyptian. In spite of this, their theories were later promoted, and expanded upon by the mountebanks of the 19th century spiritualism, or by occasional well meaning, but mislead writers on the occult. As a result, the work of these pseudo-scholars continues to influence theories of Tarot magic to this day.
     
     So what is the Celtic connection?

A.E. Waite is best known as the co-creator of the popular and widely used Rider-Waite Tarot deck ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rider-Waite-Smith_deck ) and author of its companion volume, The Key to the Tarot. Waite was a member of a magical/occult society the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. Although Waite dismissed the belief that the Tarot was Egyptian in origin as baseless, he helped to popularize notion that esoteric systems, or knowledge connected to Tarot cards had been handed down in secret by a cadre of initiates. His new tarot was part of the reforms in Tarot theory that he introduced around 1904 and he seems to be the inventor of the “The Celtic Cross” layout for reading the cards. Waite was the first writer to call the four suits of the tarot deck the “Grail Hallows” (A sword, a spear or lance, the Holy Grail itself, and a silver platter or serving dish) the mysterious objects shown to the Arthurian knights at the Fisher King’s banquet. For the first time, the mystical interpretations of these cards are linked to speculations about connections between older Irish literature and medieval romance. One of his connections suggest that the four supernatural objects of the Tuatha De Danann The Dagda’s Cauldron, The Spear of Lugh, The Stone of Fal, The Sword of Light of Nuada resemble the objects in the Grail procession of medieval romance. Although Waite rejected the Celts as the ultimate source for tarot meaning, he insisted that true Christianity, unpolluted by an institutionalized clergy, existed in connection with the Celtic Church

     Though this speculation is intriguing and did represent a new direction in tarot theory, he failed to establish links to Celtic culture that are other than circumstantial evidence. However, like the ideas of Court de Gebelin’s, this has not prevented it becoming a cornerstone among some New Age Celtic writers.
 

Something a little different this month. A little look at some of the moble applications for smart phones and tablets that are related to Celtic culture and history.

Book of Kells

All 680 surviving pages of the manuscript as well as other special features and content. It is intended to replace previous electronic reproductions of the manuscript which had been released on DVD-ROM and CD-ROM. The app features the entire manuscript in high resolution, with 21 pages viewable at up to 6 times their actual size and categories of decorative themes that users can browse through including letters, animals, and other symbols. For iPad

Celtic Tutor

(Screen shot at right) Makes it easy and fun to learn Celtic tunes. With “Celtic Tutor you start by looping just 1 or 2 bars at a slow tempo, so even if you do not read music you will be able to work out the fingerings on your instrument by ear – and by following the notes in the app you’ll by amazed at how quickly you will learn to read music!” iOS & Android

Irish & Celtic Music

One of the largest podcast shows dedicated to Celtic music. It is hosted by musician, Marc Gunn. Twice a month you can download this free radio show of Celtic music by some of the best independent Celtic music groups online. Listen to the Irish & Celtic. iOS or Android.

Celtic Music Radio

You can now listen to Celtic Music Radio via their app on iPhone, or iPad. Android app coming soon.

Celtic Knots

Celtic Knots (left) is a puzzle game that combines some of the best parts of jigsaw puzzles and sliders. iOS & Android.

Celtic Mythology

Download the most comprehensive Celtic mythology encyclopaedia that can fit in your pocket. All the gods, heroes, legends from the ancient Celtic lands. Test your knowledge with the included TRIVIA game and post your favorite content on Facebook. iOS & Android

Colm Cille

From the 6th to the 8th century the federation of monasteries initiated by Colm Cille or Columba was responsible for a flowering of creativity and craftsmanship which has left us with magnificent works of art such as the Book of Kells and the Lindisfarne Gospels. In this virtual museum (see right) you will find examples of illuminated manuscripts, stone crosses and treasure objects displayed within a series of exhibition rooms or galleries dedicated to each art form. Visitors here can interact with these precious art works in a manner not possible within a real museum. iPhone & iPad.

A History of Ireland in 100 Objects

By the Royal Irish Academy. the story of Ireland, told through photos, film and audio of the key objects in Irish history. Starting in 5,000 BC with the Mesolithic Fish Trap, you can trace the course of Irish history through to 2013 and a decommissioned IRA gun. Along the way, you can explore the significance of the Spanish Armada, the path of the Irish in America, the horrors of Bloody Sunday or the homesickness of Irish goldminers in Australia. iOS & Android.

Celtic App for iPad

The Celtic app offers a fun and dynamic way to explore the works of the ancient Celtic culture. Celtic art is both beautiful and dynamic and the app is designed to bring this ancient art to life. The Celts are famous for their intricate knots that were symbols of unity and eternity. The Celtic App tries to keep this ancient culture alive.

Seamus Heaney: Five Fables

Discover a classic of medieval literature in Seamus Heaney’s sparkling translation of five of the fables written by Robert Henryson, a 15th-century Scottish poet, one of the greatest of the late medieval Scots makars. Chosen specially by Seamus Heaney, narration by the legendary comedian Billy Connolly brings a combination of high and popular art to the gorgeous animations originally broadcast on the BBC. iOS

Celtic Myth Podshow App

A companion app to the Celtic Myth Podshow. Instant access to the latest episode. Includes the shownotes to read inside the app, downloadable wallpaper for each episode to use in your iPhone and some extra audio contact on selected episodes. iOS & Android

Archwilio Mobile App

The new Archwilio App allows smartphone and tablet users to digitally explore over 100,000 archaeological records in Wales for the first time. The free app enables users to access millennia of archaeological information specific to Wales, providing a fun resource to improve education and understanding of the importance and sheer variety of Wales’ archaeology. Android.

There’s lots of other apps out there that I don’t have time to mention here. There are lots fo travel app so if you are planning a trip be sure to look for travel apps or apps from specific museums that can help enhance your visit. The Clonmacnoise Smartphone App combines a 3D reconstruction of the famous archaeological site with the GPS, compass and touch screen functionality of the iPhone and iPad, allowing users to navigate their way around the physical site through the sights and sounds of the distant past, all recreated digitally and in 3D on the app. Here’s a video preview of this App on Youtube