Category: KORO


QUEST 33: ‘EIRE THE GREAT’ ‘THE IRISH LINE’ DAY THIRTEEN & FOURTEEN

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November 13, 2022

“Like time and like life too, the quests really do fly by and here we are nearing the end of this great Welsh and Irish Aventure. One realises that life is here to be embraced to it’s fullest, for it is over far too soon and every part of life is indeed an amazing and exciting journey for everyone to enjoy. The quests have been amazing so far, on a physical, spiritual and metaphysical level for a Light is truly shinning and guiding me on my way through this labyrinth of life….”

24th SEPTEMBER: WICKLOW GOAL. Wicklow:  Wicklow Goal does has a pervading sense of darkness hanging over it, and indeed it truly should have, considering it’s history. It is said to be haunted and that is no suprise, and indeed it has been featured in a television ghost hunter show. It is a great tourist attraction with a lovely rustic style resturant serving great food! There has been a prison on this site since the late eighteenth century. Prisoners were held at the gaol during the 1798 Rebellion and the Great Famine, many being held there prior to penal transportation.

“The outside of Wicklow Goal, looking very bleak and barren” <click to enlarge>

The goal is now a very well laid-out with plenty to see, and there is a fantastic interactive augmentive reality experience, which really does have to be experienced to be believed. It throws one right back into those dark depressing times of the rebelion and beyond, to the start of the ‘troubles’ in fact, and one really does think one is actually there – very eye opening and a excellent experience. read more about the gaol’s history here:

Wicklow Gaol.

“From inside Wicklow Goal where one small Grail clues can be located….” <click to enlarge>

 

“Outside in the yard, it was hell on earth working on the treadmill…” <click to enlarge>

Grail Bloodline:

  • Lord Robert de Neville. (Karl’s 21st Great Grandfather) 1237-1271

ST KEVIN’S CHURCH: KNOCKFIN: Co Wicklow: St Kevins Church was set in a beautiful garden setting with some quite magical touches about it. There was a beautiful labyrinth there with many meaningful ornamental touches around with words of explanation. But what does one do when surprised by a beautiful labyrinth? Why one just has to walk it! And walk it indeed i did! 🙂

The Labyrinth
‘An ancient symbol found in several religous traditions representing ‘wholeness’
The Labyrinth is a ‘metaphor’ for life’s journey, a symbol that creates a sacred space and place, which takes us out of our own ego to ‘that which is within’

Sadly there is nothing on the internet for this church so one just has to go by the ‘feel’ of it and that fact that it is a part of our quests so of course connected to Craft. There are some really lovely words on the plaques and stones around the grounds that document the life and times of St Kevin. We were able to pop inside for just a very short time as we ‘happened’ upon the caretakers who were just locking up for the day and managed a few nice photos.

I was able to capture a few of the treasures inside the church before it was locked….

St Kevins Church is set in a quiet tranquil area and one can understand why he himself pilgrimaged there…

Within the well thought-out garden of the church are some lovely plaques and stones that tell of St Kevins journey depicting his gentle life, with some very meaningful works <please click each image to view in detail>

Grail Bloodline Connection:

  • Lord Robert de Neville. (21st Great Grandfather) 1237-1271

Another very fascinating day and more was yet to come as we drove through the stunning Wicklow Mountains; mountains that have securely held on to all their secrets throughout modern time. Forget about what you know, it’s what you dont know that is important, we all see through different eyes, some are open while others are not. One needs to have one’s eyes well and truly open in those Wicklow Mountains, for then one can see it all. But if you dont ‘see’, then you were not meant to… The hidden riddles of an alternative history are all there, just hidden in plain sight….

The mysterious and magificant Wicklow Mountains <click to enlarge>

25th SEPTEMBER: ST JOSEPH’S CHURCH TEMPLERAINEY. Dublin Road. Tiknock. Arklow. Co Wicklow: Sadly again no information on the internet on the history of this church. It looks very modernish in comparison with many of the other churchs we have visited, but as we always strive to say, it is not the building but the actual site it has been built upon. There are no grounds as such, it’s mostly car park, but just a few shrubs and a rather lovely statue. We were very lucky to gain access as this church too was just being locked up, so i had a rather whirlwind photo oportunity inside to say the leat!

St Joseph’s Church – we really ‘flew’ around it!

Grail Bloodline Connection:

  • Earl Gospatrick Mac Maldred. (26th Great Grandfather) 1042-1082

25th SEPTEMBER:  ST. ENOCHS CHURCH. KILLINICK. Sanctuary. Co Wexford: Again sadly another church we could not get inside of and no info as such about it. It was set in pretty grounds with some old gravestones with some interesting iron railings. It looked to be as if it was not used much, but one never knows. This present church was built in 1828 on the site of a much older church. The whole village seemed extremely quiiet and deserted and the preserved old water pump on the green, made one really feel like one was back ‘in time’.

St Enoch’s Church: A peaceful corner of time…. <click to enlarge>

I did find this ‘historical’ description on Killinick itself though: “a parish, in the barony of FORTH, county of WEXFORD, and province of LEINSTER, 4½ miles (S.) from Wexford, on the road to Rosslare; containing 591 inhabitants. It comprises 1254 statute acres, which are chiefly under tillage, and in a good state of cultivation: there is a quarry of shingle, which is used for repairing the roads. Coal and other commodities are brought up in cots from Wexford harbour, by an inlet which is navigable at spring tides. Some of the inhabitants on the banks of this inlet are engaged in fishing. Fairs are held in the village on Easter- Monday, Whit-Tuesday, April 8th, May 27th, Sept. 21st, and Nov. 30th. Petty sessions are held every fortnight or month, on Tuesdays, and here is a constabulary police station. The living is a rectory, episcopally united to the vicarage of Maglass, and to the impropriate curacies of Killiane, Kilmocree, St. Michael’s, and Ishartmon. The tithes amount to £102. 18. 5½., of which £3. 14. 5. is payable to the impropriator, £85. 2. 7. to the rector, and £14. 1. 5½. to the rector of Ballybrennan. The church, a plain modern structure with a square tower, was built in 1828, by a loan of £1100 from the late Board of First Fruits, but has lately been condemned as unsafe. In the R. C. divisions this parish forms part of the union or district of Maglass, and has a neat chapel at Ballymore. The parochial school is held in a private house, and is aided by donations from the rector; and there is another public school, in which 120 children are educated, and 40 are taught in a private school. Ballyran Castle is situated about a quarter of a mile south of the church, and is the property of the Lett family”

Eventually i did find a bit more info of the construction/building kind on ‘The Buildings of Ireland’ search page if anyone is interested, but sadly the page would not let me leave a link here or copy and paste the info, so maybe that was meant to be….

The old graveyard of St Enoch’s, plus it’s interesting wall (another way in for pilgrims) and the old village pump <click to enlarge>

Grail Bloodline Connection:

  • Earl William Neville. 4th Earl of Abergavenny. (5th Great Uncle) 1792-1868

26th SEPTEMBER: FARE THEE WELL IRELAND:  So that was it then and it was once again to be a fond farewell to Ireland and home once again to the UK via ‘The Last Pub in Ireland’ and a very stormy ride on the high seas! Then back to the UK via Wales….

“There is often a great sense of ‘time’ when on our quests. It may be that certain place are ‘timeless’. Others places have a feeling of ‘going back in time’. Even more interesting some sites have a sense of being ‘time out of time’. A few places do have a sense of ‘drifting in and out of time’ – maybe thats a story for another day. In the Wicklow Mountains area there was definitely a feeling of time, but it was a sense of known history hidden in time. Pockets of ‘other time’ do exist within our reality, yet many will never have an inkling of what is really out there in their ‘time’….”

“Never forget that time is everything.
Time heals, time hides and time will always reveal….”

“There is a season for eveything.
A time for every occupation under heaven.
A time for giving birth.
A time for dying.
A time for planting.
A time for uprooting”

 

13th November 2022 “The Keeper of Scrolls”

 email me here ‘moon.willow@ntlworld.com’

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QUEST 33: ‘EIRE THE GREAT’ ‘THE IRISH LINE’ DAY TWELVE

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October 5, 2022

“So it was time to say goodbye to our lovely ‘Beach Pad’ on the Hook Penisular. We had thoroughly enjoyed staying there for the four nights and were very sad to leave, as we we also sad to be nearing the end of this amazing quest. We had stayed here amongs some of the most beautiful counrtyside and coastal scenery i have ever seen. There are many stunning places left in this realm, more people need to get out and about and enjoy it more and see what really matters in this life….”

23rd SEPTEMBER 2021:

Dunbrody Famine Ship Experience. Quayside. New Ross. Co Wexford.

This reproduction of the original sailing ship cuts a fine historic figure along the quayside of New Ross, and is certainly a step back in time to what life used to be like and very eye-opening too when one takes the tour of the ship. One gets a real sense of how hard life could be and of how so many people risked their very life for the promise of a better life elswhere, and yet immigration and migration still goes on today, so for some folks nothing has changed. After we had been thrown back in time, we had a lovely meal in the resturant there and browsed the shop, which did had some good quality Celtic gifts there.

.https://www.dunbrody.com/

A fascinating experience for anyone and i discovered a couple of ‘Fords’ too! <click to enlarge>

Grail Bloodline:

  • All previous connections and bloodlines are relevant here…

Church of St Mary. Cushintown. Co Wexford: For a church that is so full of beautiful and meaningful symbolism relating to Craft, there is practically nothing on the internet in respect of any history of this church, but maybe that is the way it is meant to be…

A beautiful church in a lovely setting. One can see that the remains of St Teresa visited this church, so maybe a story for another day… <click to enlarge>

Look closely at some of the windows here, some of you may recognise what that represent <click to enlarge>

Grail Bloodline:

  • Earl William Neville. 4th Earl of Abergavenny (Karl’s 5th Great Uncle) 1792-1868

Ferns Cathedral: Ferns Lower. Co Wexford: Sadly the cathedral was closed when we arrived, but it did have some pretty grounds and an old cemetry we could wander around and the remains of a medieval monastry nearby. But happily i have managed to find some info on it. The cathedral church of St Edan is a cathedral church of the church of Ireland in the ecclesiastical province of Dublin. Until 1949, the designation of the Cathedral was the Cathedral Church of St. Ædan, a variant spelling of Edan or Aidan. The original medieval Roman Catholic cathedral was built by Bishop St. John in the 1230s.  The building was burnt down in Elizabethan times by the O’Byrnes of Wicklow, and only a small portion of the ruins remain. Although Queen Elizabeth 1 of England ordered it rebuilt, only a section of the choir was restored. This was subsequently further altered in the early 1800s and the cathedral was reordered again in the early 1900s. An internal chancel arch was raised, and a quire and sanctuary created. Chapter stalls were re-used from Kilkenny cathedral. A new episcopal ‘cathedra’ was provided and the flat plaster ceiling of the church was replaced with one of boarded wood in a gothic revival style and various other works completed over the years, but sadly of late both the cathedral and the cemetry have been vandalised.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferns_Cathedral

A bit more interesting on this site:

https://www.discoverireland.ie/wexford/ferns-cathedral

Grail Bloodline:

  • Lord Robert de Neville. (21st Great Grandfather) 1237-1271

“So the end of another very interesting day had arrived and time to make our way to our lasts digs of this quest, a rather sumptous apartment at Rosslare Harbour, rather handily situated near the ferry terminal…”

‘The Keeper of Scrolls’

AKA ‘moon.willow@ntlworld.com’

5th October 2022

 

 

 

 

 

 

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QUEST 33 ‘EIRE THE GREAT’ ‘THE IRISH LINE’ DAY ELEVEN

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October 2, 2022

‘We have arrived at the last chapter of this magificant Irish Quest, where many truths and revelations were revealed. I have become a little behind with these updates, due to life and covid and also covering (and enjoying) more quests too, so lots of learning, photography and of course great companionship has certainly been experienced. Re-capping here after such a long gap will be like a learning process for me all over again. As i have become so far behind i will try and keep the write-ups shorter than usual and maybe just allow the wiki descriptions to come into their own by sharing the link rather than a long description. Of course all Craft info will be shared as before’

Wednesday 20th July 2022:

Day Eleven: All Saints Church. Templetown. Fethard County Wexford.  The area is on the beautiful Hook Penisular, the area we were staying in for a few nights, with sea views and stunning landscapes everywhere one looks. This elevated ‘Keystone Church’ church looks over the countryside with some lovely views all around it. Over one of the doors is a lovely image of the Archangel Michael, whom is turning out to be some kind of protector (or guide) to us on these quests – he is certainly a guide to me…..

All Saints Church Templetown <please click to enlarge>

Inside the church is some rather unusual and beautiful decor, the likes of which i had not seen before, full of colour and symbolism and of course the connection to Templarism is extremely obvious from the symbolism here, and if ones knows what one is looking for, some well placed Grail symbols are to be discovered.  The church dates from 1895/1900 and was ‘restored in 1998 and you can read more on its architectural features in the link below:

The beauty of the well-loved interior <please click to enlarge>

https://www.buildingsofireland.ie/buildings-search/building/15704906/all-saints-catholic-church-templetown-wexford

However this may be of more interest to Craft folks, for, according to this article, the church shares a Knight Templar history: https://www.patrickcomerford.com/2019/03/a-church-in-templetown-that-owes-more.html

Just a snippet of the article but more to read on the link above: “Templetown on the Hook Peninsula takes its name from the Knights Templar who were granted large sections of land in this remote area of south-west Co Wexford shortly after the arrival of the Anglo-Normans in Ireland. The Knights Templar were a religious, monastic order formed in 1118 to defend the Kingdom of Jerusalem and to protect Christian pilgrims during the Crusades. Their official name was the Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon. The Templars arrived in Ireland in September 1220, and their foundations in Ireland included the Templar church in Templetown, Co Wexford, Clontarf Castle, north of Dublin, Baldongan Castle near Skerries, and, perhaps, Askeaton in Co Limerick. They continued to hold vast estates across Europe until King Philip IV, who was heavily in debt to the Templars accused them of heresy and sexual misconduct. Many of the Templars were arrested and Pope Clement V disbanded the order. Like their counterparts across Europe the Templars in Ireland were ruthlessly suppressed amidst bizarre allegations between 1308 and 1310. The Templars in Ireland were arrested on 2 February 1308 and held in Dublin Castle. Their estates were seized by King Edward II, who leased them to close allies and associates. Five inquisitors, three Dominicans and two Franciscans, arrived in Ireland in September 1309 to oversee the trial. The trial began on 6 February in Saint Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin, and lasted four months, concluding on 6 June 1310. The historical records of the time do not show any evidence of the use of torture on the Knights Templar in Ireland” contiued on wepage….

For a tour around the churchs with many of the symbols explaind – please see our youtube video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZfJOxSLz-4

All Saints Church Templetown: For those of your following our Quests you will see that the symbolism here simply screams Templarism, and for those of you going that bit deeper deeper Grail clues may be revealed… <please click on photos to enlarge them>

  • Grail Bloodline Clues: A ‘Keystone’ Church

Hook Lighthouse. Hook Head. Churchtown. Co Wexford: Set on a spectacular coastal headland, where the seas are wild and untamed, the Hook Lighthouse on the Hook Penisular is a fascinating place to visit and is on the Norman Way Footpath. It is one of the oldest lighthouse in the world, and the second oldest operating lighthouse in the world, after the Tower of Hecules in Spain. We took the guided history tour of the lighthouse and climbed to the very top up a very steep old stone spiral stairway, to amazing views all around. The existing tower dates from the twelth century and apparently a beacon has been in place since the 5th century. When we were there in 2021 the lighthouse would have been 849 years old. The tower was built by Strongbow’s son-in-law William Marshall, Earl of Pembroke, who succeeded Strongbow as Earl of Leinster. Hook lighthouse is a fascinating example of Irish medieval architecture.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hook_Lighthouse

 

A gorgeous day in Ireland on the Hook Penisular where we spent a fascinating few hours <please click to enlarge>

Grail Bloodline:

  • Sir Thomas Neville (Karl’s 4th Great Grandfather) 1810-1893

The stunning coast of Co Wexford, on our way to the Star of the Sea Church <click to enlarge>

Our Lady Star of the Sea Church. Duncannon. Co Wexford. Ireland: This beautiful church dedicated to Mary (whom of course is the s’tar of the sea’) was built in 1896 and stands on Duncannons highest point, overlooking the Waterford Estuary. It proved impossible to find out any info from the internet on this church, so maybe it was not meant to be. The church did have a few surprises inside in the way of clues to our quest and to the Fisher King. It also had a rather beautiful energy that aligned with my own. Some things are not alway meant to be obvious, for what they truly are, in the world of men and i guess this is one such place. If you watch the video above, the astute of you may pick up on some Grail clues, but anyway you will recieve knowledge not shared afortime.

The beautiful ‘Star of the Sea’ in its elevated setting <click to enlarge>

 

Subtle clues for the keen-eyed to pick up on….

The flower of southern Ireland surrounds this church

Grail Bloodline clues:

  • Sir Thomas Neville (Karl’s 4th Great Grandfather) 1810-1893

Meanwhile on a deserted hillside in Co Wexford, the last visit of the day was this lovely ruin of a Templar Church, of which Templetown was named after. We quietly wandered around on our own enjoying these old Templar ruins.  Again not a lot in the way of info apart from the notice here, it’s part of the ‘Norman Way’ too, and ramblers like a bit of useful info…

And so it was that we bade a sad farewell to the Hook Pennisular, for we had truly enjoyed being here, for many reasons… <click to enlarge>

The dawning of another day would take us on another part of this Irish Quest; our last chapter in fact….

 

‘The Keeper of Scrolls’

AKA ‘moon.willow@ntlworld.com’

“I am always please to hear from you, feel free to drop me a line, teachings also available”

3rd October 2022

 

 

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QUEST 32: ATLANTIC ATLANTIS: DAY THREE & FOUR

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August 13, 2021

“Grounding and settling down in Ireland was a much quicker process than last time we were there; tuning into the energies, we quickly found our feet and indeed became energised by it all. With lovely realxing views from our accomadation, we swiftly settled in, full of anticipation into quest mode…”

Thursday 1st July: St Coleman’s Church: Newcastle: St Colemans Church is situated in a quiet area of Newcastle, in lovely spacious grounds with views all around. Newcastle is a small yet beautifully vibrant coastal resort in County Down, with a population of 7,672 at the 2011 Census. It lies within the Mourne Mountains district and is extremely popular. The name of the town is thought to derive from the castle built by Felix Magennis of the Magennis clan in 1588, which stood at the mouth of the Shimna River. This castle was demolished in 1830. The Mourne Mountains are the setting for many local myths and legends. There are stories of ‘The Blue Lady’, a woman abandoned by her husband whose ghost still haunts the mountains, and more recently the idea of a wild cat living in the Mournes. Many of the stories although having true origins are only folklore and give many of the towns attractions their names, such as Maggie’s Leap being named after a local girl called Maggie, who leapt over the impressive chasm to her death while fleeing soldiers with a basket of eggs. You can read much more via the link below:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newcastle,_County_Down

A peaceful site but little known about the church….

Sadly though, this little church was closed to us on this day: it was erected and opened in 1927, but the site would have been established long before that. There are some interesting artworks and pulpit to see inside, if we had been able to actually get inside. The parish graveyard adjoins St Colman’s. The churchyard is about 1 mile from the Church of Ireland Church, to which it belongs. It is therefore, technically a church cemetery as it is detached from the church. There are two Commonwealth burials of the 1914-1918 war here. One of which, in the South-West part, is the grave of an unidentified Naval rating whose body was sadly washed ashore in May,1918.

Such a peaceful gravyard with some splendid memorials within. Many of the relevant churches upon this quest are shut do to covid and so i cannot show you any of the amazing artifacts and symbols that may be inside – instead some peaceful strolls around the grounds to soak up the enegies there… <click to enlarge>

It is written that St. Colman’s mother Queen Rhinagh, when in an advanced state of pregnancy in late 559 A.D., became the object of jealous hatred of her husband the King. The King had heard that according to a prophecy of authority his future son (St. Colman) was destined to surpass in greatness all the others of his illustrious lineage. Fearing the worst for her child still in her womb and for herself, Rhinagh was obliged to flee her husband’s company. She was nevertheless caught by the King’s men and cast with a heavy stone tied around her neck into the deepest portion of the Kiltartin river. Miraculously, Our Blessed Lord intervened, and in an instant, the heavy stone floated like a cork to the surface, bringing Rhinagh and her future offspring (St. Colman) safely to the river’s bank.

You can read more about St Coleman and his miraculour birth and life here:

http://www.stcolman.com/life_baptism.html

Grail Bloodline Connections:

  • John Fordham 1883 Collooney, Sligo (1858 – 1932)  Karl’s 3 x GGF

Inch Abbey: Downpatrick: (from Irish Dún Pádraig,) meaning ‘Patrick’s stronghold’ is a small town about 21 miles south of Belfast in County Down, Northern Ireland. It has been an important site since ancient times and it’s cathedral is said to be the burial place of Saint Patrick. Downpatrick had a population of 10,822 according to the 2011 Census. It is known for it’s historical connection to St. Patrick; the town being named after him. It is believed during the 5th century he had lived in Downpatrick and is currently buried in Down Catherdral. An early Bronze Age site was excavated in Downpatrick, revealing two round houses and some archaeological evidence indicates a Neolithic settlement at the Cathedral Hill site.

Lots more to read here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Downpatrick

Inch Abbey, located on the north bank of the Quoile River, was founded by John de Courcy in atonement for his destruction of Erenagah Abbey. The buildings are mainly from the 12th and 13th centuries. The first monastery established on the northern banks of the river Quoile in 800 AD was known as Inis Cumhscraigh, but clearly the area was in use way before that, in order (from a Craft connection) for King Niall (see below) to have an interest in the area. Nothing remains of the early monastery, but traces of the Early Christian earthworks enclosure can be seen on aerial photographs. The setting is really beautiful, and you can see why the Anglo-Norman knight John de Courcy established the Cistercian abbey here in c.1180. It is believed the Abbey was founded as an act of repentance for his destruction of the Abbey at Erinagh three years earlier.

Layout of how Inch Abbey would have looked <click to enlarge>

The abbey was colonised with monks from Furness Abbey in England. It was built to a typical Cistercian layout, a large cruciform church with a low tower at the crossing of the north and south transept. The cloister garth is situated to the south of the church. Along the east of the cloister are the ruins of a vestry, chapter house, parlour and day room. To the south is the refectory and kitchen. There was a well and a bakehouse situated to the southwest of the cloister. The abbey, which retained a strong English influence refusing to accept Irish monks into the community, was remodelled in the 15th century, before being suppressed in 1541. It’s name is derived from the Irish word inis, meaning ‘island’, referring to the fact that the monastery was originally surrounded by the River Quoile. Interstingly another ‘Game of Thrones’ location.

Inch Abbey where time reveals the hidden and ancient energies reveal. Inch Abbey still has many secrets yet to be revealed, many buried underground, within time. Many secrets, of a kind not visible, only sensed, waiting hidden in time, maybe never revealed….  Ireland, whatever the weather, is a beautiful country full of surprises and interesting enenergies. <click to enlarge>

At the time of King Niall (Karl’s 46th GGF) there was also a lot of Danish influence in the area, which will be a story for another day, but the Vikings did plunder the settlement in 1149 AD and carried out a great deal of destruction, that later had to be rebuilt, so the abbey has always been under attack over the years. What is interesting is that it was almost ‘lost in time’, because of how the valley is situated and how the land lies, a lot of the valley area was covered up totally, and it was only through exavations, that what was hidden was revealed again and the abbey discovered underground. This does prove that there is so much history hidden underground, and still to this very day much lies hidden, Sometimes the history is only revealed when new bulidings or carparks etc are excavated, so much still hidden within the earth. But in a way this is similar to history and knowledge being buried within the minds of folks, especially Craft or spiritual folks; the knowledge is buried deep within but unlike the buildings, time will forever hide it, and the passing of a person, unlike the simple passing of time will never reveal the knowledge gained – unless of couse we of Craft, of these modern times can pass it on to true and willing students – the ball is in your court guys – do you or do you not wish to learn the ways and knowledge of Craft or shall it be forever hidden within time itself?

More words and pictures here: http://www.megalithicireland.com/Inch%20Abbey,%20Downpatrick.html

 Grail Bloodline Connections

  • King Niall 342 AD.  Karl’s 46 x GGF but with a big connection here to the Neville surname.

Ballee Non-Subscribing Presbyterian Church. Downpatrick: This T-shaped meetinghouse has been at Ballee since 1721, originally a thatched building but at some point, later in the eighteenth century, a new roof was built from Memel pine. Later still the old box pews were removed and used to fit out new rooms in the church. But the walls are the same walls that have stood as silent witness for three hundred years. There’s no minister here and the church is amalgameted with a nearby church. We were very lucky to meet and chat to Lorna, who was very kind and made a special effort to get the key to let us in. So very lucky to get inside to take some good photos but sadly no video for we were escorted around on this occasion, not underestimating the kindness shown though.

Ballee Non-Subscribing Presbyterian Church. Downpatrick <please click on the image to view>

There are some lovely artworks and plaques on the walls, a wonderful collection of vintage religious books; any antique book lover would be in a personal heaven here, as indeed i was after just a short glimpse at the archives here. Elaborate timbers/roof beams, imported from the far eastern end of the Baltic Sea, from trees 100’s of years old, from the lands that were once East Prussia, adorned the ceiling overhead. Trade links with the Baltic were already established at the time by the Presbyterian merchants in Belfast. The church inside is very well looked after, with lots of natural wood used and the flaming emblem of the non-subscribing church on the pulpit cloth and plaques are indeed very striking. I noticed the interesting barrel-shaped mausolea, mostly dating from the late eighteenth or early nineteenth centuries in the graveyard here and other graveyards in the area too. Downpatrick has a large number of what have been describes as being of ‘the barrel-vaulted variety, rather like a Nissen-hut ’.