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Tanya Marchun April 20, 2010 Irish Literature The Celtic traditions and lifestyle is something that everyone seems to want to learn more

about. Celtic ancestry or not, it is often fascinating to engage one’s self in learning about a

different culture. One of the most important structures and symbols of the Celtic region is the

Celtic cross. This paper will offer a history of the Celtic cross and its origins. It will also

demonstrate how the Celtic cross evolved over time into what it is currently.

To begin the Celtic cross has a long history and many variations of how it came to be

known as the Celtic cross. The very beginning of Christianity was rough for followers. They

were often persecuted and hated. Therefore many Christians were not openly public about their

faith and worshiped in catacombs and hidden areas. One of the most famous men to persecute

the Christians was Emperor Nero. In 64 A.D. Nero began the Christian martyrdom.

“In their very deaths they were made the subjects of sport: for they were covered with the

hides of wild beasts, and worried to death by dogs, or nailed to crosses, or set fire to, and

when the day waned, burned to sever for the evening lights (Nero Persecutes the

Christians, 64 A.D.).”

The first three centuries of Christianities existence was a difficult time and it was not

until the fourth century that a change occurred. During this time, 306 A.D. to be exact, Emperor

Constantine came into power and Christianity rose as the dominant religion in the Roman

Empire. A major battle called the battle of the Milvian Bridge was influential not only for

Constantine but also for Christianity. During this battle, “he decides that his men shall wear on

their shields a Christian symbol – the monogram known as the Chi-Rho, formed

from the first two Greek letters of the word Christ (Gascoigne, 1).”

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After winning the battle of the Milvian Bridge, Constantine returns to Rome and favors the

Christians that were persecuted. Churches were built for them and they were now the favored

religion in the Roman Empire. The Chi-Rho symbol had become an important symbol in

Christianity. The Chi-Rho was the first symbol to be seen carved onto rocks and stones and was

thought to be the beginning form of the Celtic cross.

However, there is another version that involves Saint Patrick and his work converting

druids throughout Ireland. When Patrick was only 16 years old he was taken into

captivity and worked as a ranch hand, herding sheep and working for his master,

Milchu in Dalriada. During his captivity he prayed often and learned to speak

the Celtic language. After six years he fled his captivity and returned to Britain.

While in Britain he studied under St. Germain and became a priest. During this time Celestine

the Pope, wanted to make a mission to Ireland to convert the pagans to Christianity. Patrick

accompanied him back to Ireland and this is where his conversion of the Druids began.

It is believed that Saint Patrick used the common druid symbol of the circle to create the

Celtic cross. The circle was a symbol for the sun or moon goddess for the druids. Being that

was a familiar symbol to them, Patrick simply drew a cross through the middle of the circle to

create the Christian symbol. This allowed for the combination of Christianity and pagan ideas

and made it much easier for druids to convert to Christianity.

With the newly created symbol, it is easy to find many stones with

that carving on them throughout the 5th, 6th and 7th centuries. Many of the

stones created during this time were often created with the first Christian

symbols on them such as angels among others. Many of these large slab

stones also had Latin inscriptions. One example of a Latin inscription is the letters DNE, which

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are the Latin word Domine, which is translated as Lord. Another type of carving present at this

time was the Ogham, which is a method of cutting notches on the edges of the stone. These

notches often corresponded with a letter in the alphabet.

As the number of carvings rose after the 7th century, it was difficult to keep track of the

many different types of stones that were created. Two men, Victor Erle Nash-Williams and

Romilly Allen were archeologists who classified the stones. Nash-Williams classified them in

three groups. Group 1, earliest created much like the one in the photo, Group 2, created between

the 7th and 9th centuries, and Group 3, which were stones with intricate Christian representations

on them. Allen classified them in three classes. Class I, were called the “symbol stones”, Class

II were stones with crosses, biblical and secular objects on them, and Class III were cross slabs

and free standing crosses.

Many of the symbol stones that are classified in Class I by Allen were created by the

Picts. These were people who lived in what is now Northern Scotland and in the 8th century

were also converted to Christianity. As time progressed so did the skills of the stone carvers.

Details became much more intricate and specialized. According to Malcolm Seaborne’s book

titled, Celtic Crosses of Britain and Ireland, “They [Pictish craftsmen] also adopted with

enthusiasm a great variety of interlace patterns, which were used to add interest to the crosses

outlined on the slabs, together with key and spiral patterns on some of the stones (18).”

At the beginning of the making of the symbols, the stone slabs they were carved into

were not made into any special form or shape. Instead it was just a normal stone that had

carvings on it. However, in the 9th century the stone slabs themselves were shaped. Many of the

slabs were turned into large blocks that were flat and thick. With straight edges and corners the

blocks were slowly being formed into freestanding crosses like the ones that are present today.

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One of the tallest stones made during the period in between crosses still on large stone slabs and

freestanding crosses is the Sueno’s Stone which is 20 feet high. This was created in the 9th

century and depicts rows of warriors on one side and a cross on the opposite side.

In the 9th century there were also many disc-headed types of crosses made. These were

the beginning of the changing of the shape of the rock itself. Instead of large

slabs, the stones were carved more into a round disk shape on top with a

straight bottom half. Nash-Williams would have dated this particular shape of

cross to be made sometime between the 9th and 10th century.

Also during this same time period was the creation of the Ruthwell Cross. This cross in

particular was very important for Christianities development. This cross was used as an

instructional tool because it had so many depictions of Christ. It was used to teach people about

Christianity. It was the first Celtic cross made that did not have a ring to support the arms.

Instead it is a freestanding cross at 18 feet high and depicts scenes from Christ’s life. This cross

in particular was in Scotland and when the country became Protestant and it was ordered to be

torn down. In an article by Melissa Snell titled The Ruthwell Cross, she states:

“The General Assembly ordered the destruction of the Ruthwell Cross. It was cast down,

broken into pieces and scattered throughout the churchyard. It remained in this sad state

until 1799, when Rev. Dr. Henry Duncan realized its historical significance and decided

to piece it together again. This took 24 years, and when it was finished, much of the

cross had worn down from weather and neglect, and some of it seemed deliberately

defaced (1).”

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The reconstructed cross stayed in outside but was later declared an ancient

monument and was moved inside the church where it is still present today.

The picture to the left is a diagram of some of the carvings that are on the

Ruthwell Cross. The Ruthwell Cross also led to the development of the Celtic

High Crosses. According to an article from the University of North Carolina at

Chapel Hill titled, Celtic High Crosses, states:

“The high crosses served a variety of functions. The crosses are

typically located within a monastery. The crosses often marked the boundaries of

monastic lands, or important crossroads. Other crosses served devotional or penitential

functions. Still others commemorated a miraculous event, the dedication of a church, or

a sacred spot associated with a saint (1).”

There are many different types of high crosses throughout Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

What specifically each one was used for is unknown. But they were significant in the earlier

centuries and are still significant today.

The history of the Celtic cross is important to the development of Christianity throughout

the 4th through 12th centuries not only in Ireland but throughout all of Europe. With Saint Patrick

using it as a tool to convert druids to Christianity, and later crosses also used as teaching tools, it

is important to recognize that not only do the crosses represent Christianity but also its growth

and strength throughout history. Even though the beginning of Christianity was harsh, that

changed with Emperor Constantine and his acceptance of Christians. The growth of Christianity

also caused the growth of the Celtic crosses from very simple structures and figures to more

complex and intricate forms that we see today.

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Works Cited

Celtic High Crosses. Celtic Art & Cultures. 1998. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

21 Apr 2010. http://www.unc.edu/celtic/topicsindex.html

Gascoigne, Bamber. “History of Constantine.” History World. From 2001, ongoing.

http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?historyid=ac60

“Nero Persecutes The Christians, 64 A.D.,” Eyewitness to History, 2000.

www.eyewitnesstohistory.com

Seaborne, Malcolm. Celtic Crosses of Britain and Ireland. 1st ed. Aylesbury: Shire Publications

LTD, 1989. 18. Print.

Snell, Melissa. "The Ruthwell Cross." About.com Medieval History. The New York Times

Company, 2010. Web. 21 Apr 2010.

<http://historymedren.about.com/od/medievalscotland/p/ruthwell_cross.htm>.