What a fascinating place - beautifully captured by your words and Gerhard's photos! We have a large puffin colony near us so it's wonderful to see them thriving in other places.
I wonder how the monks were able to recruit other monks to join them. And how the population went up and down over the years. Did the men ever leave the island or was it for life?
Were lists kept of the men who lived there over the centuries?
Those are all really good questions, and I don't have the answer to any of them. I'm not sure anyone else does, either, because--as far as I can tell--no records exist with that can of detail. It would certainly be interesting to find out, though.
A great potpourri of a post, Clarice! From the first dramatic shots of the enormous cliffs of Skellig Michael and the lighthouse to those darling Puffins, to the corbelled domes made by the sequestered monks of the island and their walls, to the thousands of gannets nesting. I enjoyed thinking about the juxtaposition between Christian and Celtic. I have long loved the Celtic's pagan ways, especially considering that "God was in every single element of the natural world." That seems to simplify things, doesn't it? And to top it all off, a map! Brilliant!
Thank you for your wonderful comments, Jeanine. I really appreciate them. Like you, I much prefer seeing God in every single element of the natural world as opposed to some old man in the sky who is judging, vindictive and remote.
What a fascinating place - beautifully captured by your words and Gerhard's photos! We have a large puffin colony near us so it's wonderful to see them thriving in other places.
Thank you, Allan. Puffins are adorable, and this was the first time and place that Gerhard was able to get close to them.
That looks fantastic!
It is!
I wonder how the monks were able to recruit other monks to join them. And how the population went up and down over the years. Did the men ever leave the island or was it for life?
Were lists kept of the men who lived there over the centuries?
Those are all really good questions, and I don't have the answer to any of them. I'm not sure anyone else does, either, because--as far as I can tell--no records exist with that can of detail. It would certainly be interesting to find out, though.
A great potpourri of a post, Clarice! From the first dramatic shots of the enormous cliffs of Skellig Michael and the lighthouse to those darling Puffins, to the corbelled domes made by the sequestered monks of the island and their walls, to the thousands of gannets nesting. I enjoyed thinking about the juxtaposition between Christian and Celtic. I have long loved the Celtic's pagan ways, especially considering that "God was in every single element of the natural world." That seems to simplify things, doesn't it? And to top it all off, a map! Brilliant!
Thank you for your wonderful comments, Jeanine. I really appreciate them. Like you, I much prefer seeing God in every single element of the natural world as opposed to some old man in the sky who is judging, vindictive and remote.
Fascinating stories and photos. I can't imagine just how harsh life must've been for those monks (and lighthouse-keepers) living on Skellig Michael.
I know. It must have been almost impossibly difficult.