AS IT WAS BACK AT CHRISTMAS 2012
In August 2024 when I photographed this sculpture and garden the statue portrayed the saint with a child perched upon his shoulders, holding aloft a St Bridget's Cross. When I visited back at Christmas 2012 the cross was missing.
Saint Conleth, a man of many talents, was an Irish hermit, metalworker, and reputed copyist and illuminator of manuscripts. It is believed that he hailed from the picturesque Wicklow area.
While leading a solitary life at Old Connell on the River Liffey, in what is now Newbridge, he was persuaded by the revered Saint Brigid to serve as a priest for her monastic community in Kildare. Around 490 AD, he became the first Bishop of Kildare. Cogitosus, in his insightful "Life of Brigid," refers to him as the esteemed "bishop and abbot of the monks of Kildare".
Tragically, Conleth's life was cut short in 519 AD when he was attacked by wolves in the dense forests of Leinster while on a pilgrimage to Rome. He was laid to rest nearby. In 799 AD, his relics were transported and placed beside Brigid's in the grand cathedral in Kildare. Finally, in 835 AD, his relics were returned to their final resting place in Connell.
Saint Conleth, a man of many talents, was an Irish hermit, metalworker, and reputed copyist and illuminator of manuscripts. It is believed that he hailed from the picturesque Wicklow area.
While leading a solitary life at Old Connell on the River Liffey, in what is now Newbridge, he was persuaded by the revered Saint Brigid to serve as a priest for her monastic community in Kildare. Around 490 AD, he became the first Bishop of Kildare. Cogitosus, in his insightful "Life of Brigid," refers to him as the esteemed "bishop and abbot of the monks of Kildare".
Tragically, Conleth's life was cut short in 519 AD when he was attacked by wolves in the dense forests of Leinster while on a pilgrimage to Rome. He was laid to rest nearby. In 799 AD, his relics were transported and placed beside Brigid's in the grand cathedral in Kildare. Finally, in 835 AD, his relics were returned to their final resting place in Connell.
AS IT WAS BACK AT CHRISTMAS 2012