Survey Data
Reg No
40823021
Rating
Regional
Categories of Special Interest
Architectural, Artistic, Historical
Previous Name
St. Mary's Catholic Church
Original Use
Monument
In Use As
Monument
Date
1910 - 1920
Coordinates
222403, 420890
Date Recorded
24/06/2014
Date Updated
--/--/--
Description
Freestanding Celtic cross memorial monument, erected c. 1915, commemorating Rev. James Gannon, parish priest of the Parish of Aughnish. Comprises tapered carved limestone high cross with Celtic interlacing in relief motifs to head and shaft, bosses with mainly cross motifs to arms of cross, panel to base with chalice and grapes motifs, rope ornament to corners of shaft and to arms of cross, and with pitched gabled ‘roof’ over with ‘slate’ or ‘fishscale’ decoration. Cross set on tapering pedestal with incised inscription reading 'Grate pro anima Rev. D. Jacobi G. Gannon parochi de Aughnish qui Quinquaginta annos natus [de?] 22 Aprilus 1915 piisime. In Domino obit cujus in memoriam uti religionis advocati indeficientis et patriae amatoris defensoresque impavidi. Hoc momentum moerns possuit fraternitas antiqua hibernorum (A.O.H.) in comitatu Donegalensi coadunata. Resquiescat in pace.' Pedestal set on stepped limestone plinth (on square-plan) having pedestal over with semi-circular motifs in relief. Set in rectangular enclosure bounded by cut limestone plinth wall with piers to corners and to centre of long axis (east and west) with pyramidal heads. Set within the grounds of St. Mary’s Catholic church to the south-west of the centre of Ramelton. Priest's grave adjacent to the south having Celtic cross memorial over.
Appraisal
This fine and imposing Celtic high cross monument is a sculptural\artistic work of high quality with rich Celtic interlacing and rope motifs throughout and with intricate carved detailing to the principal faces. It was erected by the Ancient Order of Hibernians, c. 1915, as a memorial to the James Gannon (died 22nd of April 1915 at the age of 50?), parish priest of the Parish of Aughnish. A Latin inscription to the pedestal describes Rev. Gannon as a ‘religious advocate, and lover and fearless defender of the fatherland'. It uses the traditional Irish symbol of a Celtic high cross with Celtic interlacing, a style commonly used for such memorials in Ireland during the late-nineteenth and into the twentieth century, and highly appropriate for the sentiments of those who erected the memorial. The Ancient Order of Hibernians was founded in 1836 and became popular throughout Ulster from the turn of the twentieth century as a Catholic and nationalist counterpoint to the Orange Order. This monument forms part of a pair of related structures alongside the adjacent church (see 40800304), and is an integral element of the built heritage of the local area in its own right, adding artistic and historic interest to the streetscape to the south-west of the centre of Ramelton. The cut stone enclosure adds to the setting and context, and completes this composition.