North Cross at Ahenny, Eire showing West side. One of a pair of decorated standing sandstone crosses. They stand in an isolated graveyard in the middle of a field, possible date around middle of ninth century. The crosses are decorated with an intricately carved web of geometrical and animal designs depicting biblical scenes. The high cross is famous for its distictive shape with a circle or ring, often richly ornamented with elaborate decoration. They are almost exclusively found on the sites of early Irish monasteries and erected by the church authorites. From surviving legible inscriptions, it is known that there was also a political dimension to them whereby certain kings of Ireland had a hand in commissioning them which provides evidence of cooperation between the church and king in the creation of these great monuments. The Irish High Crosses had several functions or uses. These include boundary markers, but their main function was for religeous purposes as gathering places for prayers and sermons outside a church. Also, as a means of educating the mainly illiterate public about the bible stories relating to events in both the Old and New Testements, using scenes depicted on the interlinked panels. The scenes on the Ahenny crosses show (on the North Cross) David's battle with the giant Goliath, symbolising the victory of good over evil. The South Cross has scenes which include and may represent Daniel in the Lions Den.
