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Description: | "This Cathedral possesses the rare merit of being in one uniform style of architecture (that of the close of the twelfth century), a circumstance which adds greatly to the beauty of that portion of the interior which has of late been so admirably restored.
The whole length of the edifice is 300 feet, by 80 in breadth, of which space the nave occupies 130 feet, and St. Mary's Chapel (formerly used as a place of worship by the French Protestant refugees), 55. The transept measures 157 feet in length, and contains the Chapter House, said to have been the prison of the inquisition.
The Choir is 90 feet long, and is a fine example of early pointed architecture. It contains the Archbishop's throne, the prebendal stalls, and stalls of the Knights of St. Patrick. Above each of these is placed the sword and crested helmet of the Knight, and overhead wave, in silken folds, the banners of the 'most illustrious order,' which have a very pleasing effect, those of deceased members being suspended in the nave, which is separated from the side aisles by two ranges of first pointed arches, of plain but elegant design...
St. Patrick's contains some interesting monuments - Archbishop Smith, 1771; Bishop Marsh, the founder of the Library; the Earl of Cavan, 1778; and Mrs. Hester Johnson, otherwise 'Stella,' the friend of Swift. There is also one of the Dean himself, with an epitaph, the bitterness of which sufficiently reveals the author.
The exquisitely designed and wonderfully wrought stone pulpit, at the entrance of the choir, may also be considered as a monument, it having been erected by Sir Benjamin L. Guinness, Bart., in memory of his friend, the late Dean Pakenham. It may also be regarded as a monument of Irish artistic excellence, being the work of a Dublin artist."
Descriptive letterpress from the book 'Photographs of Dublin' by F. H. Mares | License: | http://www.bl.uk/services/copy/permission.html | Publisher: | Andrew Duthie, Simkin, Marshall & Co, W H Smith & Son | Rights holder: | British Library | Source: | Collect Britain | Creator: | Mares, Frederick H | Identifier: | http://www.collectbritain.co.uk/personal... | Language: | en-GB | Go to resource |
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