Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
entrance into the chapel, this forgotten doorway is crowned by a finely carved tympanum
that decorates the arch above it. It's perfectly preserved because the huge cathedral shiel-
ded it from the wind and rain. The large lion (symbol of St. Mark's gospel) is being hunted
by a centaur (half-man, half-horse) archer wearing a Norman helmet (essential conehead
attire in the late Middle Ages).
As you exit the chapel (turning left), take a look at the more exposed and weathered
tympanum outside, above the south entrance. The carved, bloated “hippo” is actually an
ox, representing Gospel author St. Luke.
• Tiptoe through the tombstones around the east end of the cathedral to the base of the
round tower.
Graveyard and Round Tower:
This graveyard still takes permanent guests—but
only those put on a waiting list by their ancestors in 1930. A handful of these chosen few
are still alive, and once they're gone, the graveyard will be considered full. The 20-foot-
tall stone shaft at the edge of the graveyard, marking the O'Scully family crypt, was once
crowned by an elaborately carved Irish high cross—destroyed during a lightning storm in
1976.
Look out over the
Plain of Tipperary.
Called the “Golden Vale,” its rich soil makes it
Ireland's most prosperous farmland. In St. Patrick's time, it was covered with oak forests
(Ireland is now the most deforested nation in the EU). A path leads to the ruined 13th-cen-
