Ireland (Lonely Planet, 9th Edition) - Fionn Davenport [288]
The true Romanesque splendour is in the detail of the exquisite doorway arches, the grand chancel arch and ribbed barrel vault, and the outstanding carved vignettes that include a trefoil-tailed grotesque and a Norman-helmeted centaur firing an arrow at a rampaging lion. The chapel’s interior is tantalisingly dark, but linger for a while and your eyes will adjust. Inside the main door, on the left, is the sarcophagus said to house King Cormac, dating from between 1125 and 1150. Frescoes once covered the walls, but only vestiges of these survive. The southern tower leads to a stone-roofed vault and a croft above the nave (no access).
HORE ABBEY
Cashel throws in another bonus for the heritage lover. This is the formidable ruin of 13th-century Hore Abbey, located in flat farmland just under 1km north of the Rock. Originally Benedictine and settled by monks from Glastonbury in England at the end of the 12th century, it later became a Cistercian house. It was gifted to the order by a 13th-century archbishop who expelled the Benedictine monks after dreaming that they planned to murder him. The complex is enjoyably gloomy, and from its interior there are superb photo ops of the Rock of Cashel with creative foregrounds, if you get it right.
BRÚ BORÚ
Cashel’s heritage and cultural centre, Brú Ború ( 062-61122; www.comhaltas.ie/locations/detail/bru_boru; 9am-5pm Jun-Sep, closed Sat & Sun Oct-May) is in a modern building next to the car park below the Rock of Cashel. The centre offers an absorbing insight into Irish traditional music, dance and song. It has a shop and cafe, but its main daytime attraction is Sounds of History, an exhibition in a subterranean chamber where the story of Ireland and its music is told through imaginative audio displays. In the summer there is a traditional show at night in the centre’s theatre. There are also daytime theatrical performances. Admission to events varies from €10 for daytime events to over €40 for the dinner shows.
OTHER SIGHTS
Cashel Heritage Town Centre ( 062-62511; www.casheltc.ie; Town Hall, Main St; admission free; 9.30am-5.30pm mid-Mar–Sep, closed Sat & Sun Oct–mid-Mar), located in the town hall, has displays and a scale model showing how Cashel looked in the 1640s.
The Cashel Folk Village ( 062-62525; Dominic St; adult/child €6/3; 9.30am-7.30pm May-Oct, 10am-6pm Mar & Apr) is an engaging exhibition of old buildings and shopfronts from around the town, plus local memorabilia and a ‘penal chapel’. It’s a bit slipshod in a heart-warming way: one sign says ‘Ponder around our unique Museum’.
In a forbidding 1836 stone building, the Bolton Library ( 062-61944; John St; adult/child €4/2; 10am-4.30pm Mon-Fri) houses a splendid 18th-century collection of books, maps and manuscripts from the dawn of printing onwards. There are works by writers from Chaucer to Swift.
Sleeping
BUDGET
Cashel Lodge and Camping Park ( 062-61003; www.cashel-lodge.com; Dundrum Rd; campsites per person €8, dm/s/d €20/40/65; ) This first-class IHH hostel, in a converted coach house northwest of town, is friendly, relaxing and well equipped. It has high-standard dorms and rooms, and a campsite. Terrific views of the Rock and Hore Abbey are bonuses, as is the attractive bare stone and wood interior.
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SISTER FIDELMA’S CREATOR
Cashel’s most famous resident is a fictional 7th-century nun. Sister Fidelma, the star of more than 18 novels by Peter Tremayne (including the recent Dove of Death), is a crimefighter of the distant past, a sort of Sherlock Holmes in heavy robes.
Legions of fans visit Cashel every year looking for tangible links to a character whose next exploits they eagerly await. Home to kings from at least the 4th century, the ancient town inspires not only fans but the author himself. ‘I still catch my breath when, approaching Cashel from any direction, coming round the hills on the road, I see the great Rock with its ancient buildings