It will launched by the renowned architectural historian, Professor Roger Stalley of Trinity College Dublin. Prior to the launch, Professor Stalley will lecture on ‘Reconstructions of the Gothic Past: The Building of Cashel Cathedral’ (5pm, Kane G2). All are welcome.

This is the first book devoted to churches in Ireland from the arrival of Christianity in the fifth century to the early stages of the Romanesque around 1100, including those built to house treasures of the golden age of Irish art such as the Book of Kells and the Ardagh chalice. Tomás Ó Carragáin’s comprehensive survey of the surviving examples forms the basis for a far-reaching analysis of why these buildings looked as they did, and what they meant in the context of early Irish society.

The book also includes the most detailed analysis to date of the layout of the most important Irish ecclesiastical complexes, including Armagh, Clonmacnoise and Glendalough. Ó Carragáin argues that some of these monumental schemes were intended to recall distant sacred topographies, especially Jerusalem and Rome. He also identifies a clear political and ideological context for the first Romanesque churches in Ireland and shows that, to a considerable extent, the Irish Romanesque represents the perpetuation of a long-established architectural tradition.

The book makes an important contribution to our understanding of Ireland’s interactions with the wider world during this formative period. It is lavishly illustrated with 300 illustrations including 100 in colour.

The costs of publication were met by the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art and by grants from the National University of Ireland and the College of Arts Celtic Studies and Social Sciences, UCC.

For further information see: http://bit.ly/a118Xw