Early Christian Ireland

432 AD

When Christianity came to Ireland

St Patrick

Most famous missionary

Monks

Religious individuals who live in communities and dedicate their lives to spiritual work, often involved in spreading Christianity and educating others.

Habit

What monks wore

Marry

What monks didn’t do

Tonsure

The weird hairstyle monks had

Beehive hut

Where monks slept

Monastery

Groups of monks

7 times each day

How many times monks prayed a day

Manuscripts

What some monks wrote

Refectory

The dining room for the monks

Church

Where monks prayed

Round tower

Where monks hid from attacks

Abbot

The boss of the monastery

Scriptorium

Where monks wrote manuscripts

Scribes

The people who wrote manuscripts

Goldsmiths

Craftsmen who made and decorated sacred objects from gold and other precious materials

Blacksmiths

Craftsmen who forged and repaired tools, weapons, and metalwork from iron

Stone masons

People who carved buildings and crosses out of stone.

Coopers

People who made barrels

High cross

Used for marking religious sites and boundaries

Wood and metal

What early high crosses were made of

Stone

What later high crosses were made of

8th century

When the Tara Brooch and Ardagh Chalice was made

Gift silver

What the Tara Brooch was made of

Beaten polished silver

What the Ardagh Chalice was made out of

Filigree

A delicate kind of metalwork made by twisting thin wires of gold or silver into fine patterns and designs

Oratory

A small chapel or room in a monastery used for prayer

The Books of Kells

Very famous manuscript written by Irish monks

Tunic

What monks wore as a top

Sandals

What monks wore on their feet

Parchment

Thin sheepskin monks wrote on

Vellum

Thin calfskin monks wrote on

Quill

What monks used to write with