Kilternan.info - Kilgobbin

A HISTORY OF KILGOBBIN

The place name Kilgobbin means the church of St. Gobban. Gobban is the Irish for blacksmith. Blacksmiths were considered to have supernatural powers by the early Celts, probably because the worked with fire. The best known reference to this is the line in St. Patrick’s breastplate invoking protection from “the spells of witches, smiths and druids”. There were a number of saint’s with this name in the early Irish church. A saint Gobban accompanied St. Fursa on his mission to England and then on to northern France where he helped to establish a monastery and was martyred. The town of St. Gobain still displays his head as a relic. Another St. Gobban was a prolific church builder in the 6th century. The festival of St. Gobban falls on 1st April.

The earliest archaeological feature in Kilgobbin is probably the hexagonal bullaun stone into which the cross is set. A bullaun stone is a rock with a round cup in it. They are found at early Christian and pre-christian religious sites in Ireland. In Glendalough there is a large bullaun called ‘The Deer Stone’ and another beside St. Kevin’s Kitchen. They were probably used as a mortar for grinding herbs for potions, or grain for ceremonial bread, and for liquid offerings, such as milk or holy water. They are also associated with prayer/cursing stones. A round stone was rolled around in the bullaun while a prayer or curse was being invoked. This ritual may well derive from the use of a round stone as a pestle in the bullaun mortar.

The mound on which the church sits is a natural geological feature which has been enlarged by it’s use as an ancient burial mound. It is said that after the Battle of Clontarf the victorious forces of Brian Boru returned to the safety of the Dublin hills, stopping at Kilgobbin to bury their dead. Near the hill there used to be a holy well, the water from which was reputed to heal eye problems. This may have been near where the water pump is now located.

Archaeological exploration surrounding construction of ‘The Rectory’ development uncovered evidence of a circular enclosure around the church site. This would be typical for a Celtic Christian ecclesiastical site, as is the East-West church orientation. They also uncovered furnaces and hearths and other signs of iron and glass working, indicating a wealthy local community in pre-Norman times.

For many centuries the celtic high cross beside the church was buried in the graveyard on the hill. It was discovered in the mid 1800s, with one arm missing, and subsequently mounted in the bullaun stone. On the east face there is a figure probably representing the crucifixion. On the opposite side is a very faint image of a robed figure, probably representing Christ in glory or possibly Saint Gobban or another local saint or bishop. These are in a form common to Irish art of the 10th century. This cross may well have been erected around the time of the Battle of Clontarf. Padraig Pearse alluded to this cross in one of the plays he wrote. Celtic crosses have a ring surrounding the centre of the cross. There are a number of theories as to the meaning of the celtic cross. Some say that they represent Christ’s supremacy over the pagan sun worship. Others, that it is an image of the light of the world and creator of the heavens on the cross, or that it is a conflagration with pagan sun worship showing the sun god on the cross. Another meaning is that it shows the eternal nature of the sacrifice of Christ. The circle is a symbol of eternity, which is still represented in the wedding ring. One of the most creditable theories is that the celtic cross is derived from the Chi-Rho symbol. Chi Rho is an abbreviation of the word “Christ” in the Greek language. The two letters were combined in symbolic form in the early Eastern church and were commonly found in the early celtic church. The first page of the Gospel of Matthew in the “Book of Kells” is Chi-Rho. The early Celtic church had strong connections with the Eastern Church. St. Patrick of course lived before the Orthodox Church split from Rome. At that time there was just one church with different emphases and cultures. Variation was common and accepted within the church. Many of the celtic high crosses have imagery sculpted on them with an eastern origin.

Moving to Viking times, there is strong evidence of a substantial Viking settlement in the Kilgobbin area. Within the church there are some fragments of Rathdown slabs. Only 32 of these are known to exist. They were so named because they are unique to this local area. They are grave slabs with Viking designs found in contemporary Christian burial places. It is reckoned that they mark the graves of Vikings who converted to Christianity in the late 10th or early 11th century, after settling in this area. While most of them have abstract designs such as fishbone, circle or cup marks, a couple of them have a combination of a cross and Viking cup marks. There is a Rathdown slab displayed in the Dalkey heritage centre. The local placename Ballally is an anglicization of Baile Olaf. Olaf was a common Viking name. The most famous of whom was a prince who led a force based somewhere in the British Isles. He was converted to Christianity and baptized at Skellig Michael in 982. He subsequently became king of the Vikings and brought Christianity to all the lands controlled by them from North America all the way to the Black Sea. He is the patron saint of Norway.

Following the Norman invasion Kilgobbin was situated on the outer Pale defensive ditch protecting the greater Dublin area. Kilgobbin castle was built in the mid 15th century by the Walshe family to help protect this boundary. For security these castles were built within sight of each other. The next castle along was at Carrickmines. The castle at Bulloch Harbour, outside Dalkey, is still intact and may be visited by prior arrangement with the nuns who now own it. It is claimed that Kilgobbin Castle is haunted by a man wearing armour and a woman who goes in and out carrying a water jar.

During local construction there were large quantities of belarmine – medieval continental pottery typically used in wine jars – found in the area. This would indicate the wealth and importance of the community here at that time. A house across the road from the castle was built as an inn and staging place on the road south from Dublin in the 17th century. This was a busy road as it led to the Powerscourt Estate, home of Richard Wingfield who was appointed Marshal of Ireland in 1600. Kilgobbin is one of only two South Dublin locations named on John Roques 1750 map of Ireland.

The church on the hill was built in 1707 on the site of earlier churches, many of which would have been made of wood. In 1826 a larger church was built in Kilternan to replace it. After this the church here fell into disuse and decay and Kilgobbin faded from significance. By this time the castle was already abandoned and the new road to Powerscourt had been built further up the hill in 1821, bypassing the ford at Kilgobbin.