Muirdach's Cross

Muirdach's Cross (South Cross)

The cross near the entrance to the site is Muirdach's Cross (a.k.a Muiredach's Cross). It dates from 900-923 AD and stands 5.5m (16 feet) tall. It is named for an abbot mentioned in the inscription on the base: "A prayer for Muirdach for whom the cross was made."

The carvings have not all been certainly identified, but on the eastern face, from the bottom up, they appear to represent: the Fall of Adam and Eve and the murder of Abel; David and Goliath; Moses bringing water from the rock to the Israelites; the Three Magi bearing gifts to Mary and Jesus.

The center of the cross on the eastern face depicts the Last Judgment, with the saved (led by David with a harp) on Christ's right and the damned on his left; above that is St. Paul in the desert. These seemingly unrelated scenes may be connected by the themes of sin, judgment and atonement.

The western face of Muirdach's Cross focuses on the New Testament and depicts, from the bottom up: the arrest or mocking of Christ (who wears a robe and carries a sceptre); doubting Thomas with another figure (perhaps St. John the Evangelist, who recorded the story); Christ giving the keys of heaven to St. Peter and a book to St. Paul; and Moses praying with Aaron and Hur.

In the central Crucifixion scene on the western face, Christ is depicted as clothed and without pain (a typical Irish image). He is flanked by two soldiers, the spearbearer who pierces his left side and another holding a cane with a cup, apparently representing the spongebearer. Between the soldiers and Christ's knees are two heads, perhaps indicating the two thieves. The bird under Christ's feet may represent the phoenix, a symbol of resurrection.

On the right arm of the cross is a depiction of the Resurrection of Christ, with guards kneeling on each side of the tomb and three angels behind them holding a small figure representing the soul. The cross is capped with a stone replica of a gabled-roof church.

At the bottom of the western face, accompanied by two cats, is an inscription translated as, "A prayer for Muiredach for whom (or by whom) the cross was made."