Muiredach's High Cross

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The Cross of Muiredach in Monasterboice gets its name from the carvings at the base of the west face, where the inscription is intertwined around two cats. This asks for a prayer for Muiredach, for whom the cross was made - he was the patron who commissioned the work. It's unclear who specifically this refers to, although scholars have speculated that it may be abbot Muiredach mac Domhnaill who died in 923. The cross is 5.5-metres high, and is regarded as the finest example of a Celtic high cross in Ireland.

The carving on the cross is fascinating, depicting a large number of scenes organized into panels. In general the east side of a high cross contains scenes from the Old Testament and the west face, from the New. Here, the east face shows Adam and Eve and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, Cain and Abel, Moses striking the rock, Samson toppling the pillars and David with the head of Goliath, while the west face shows the Flight into Egypt, the baptism of Christ, Christ being mocked by Roman soldiers and Christ in the tomb.

There are also some more unusual scenes, for example the carving of two men pulling each other's beard.