Colum Cille - St. Columba

By Stephen Walker · June 1997

Before giving birth, legend states, Eithne had a dream that she was given a beautiful cloak of many colors. The cloak stretched out from the shore of her native Ireland north to Scotland. She dreamed that the magnificent cloak was taken from her by a young man and this made her very sad. The man returned in her dream and told her not to grieve because the dream meant that she would give birth to a son who would be renowned for his teaching throughout Scotland and Ireland and she should be joyful.

On Thursday 7 December 521 A.D. in County Donegal the boy was born and named Crimthain meaning 'fox' or 'cunning wolf'. As a young boy he was so fond of prayer that he came to be called Colum Cille (Kol-lum-kill), meaning 'Dove of the Church' or Columba in Latin.

His birth was eighty years after the death of St. Patrick. Colum Cille's family was the Royal House of Uí Néill. The Gaelic Irish had heard the Gospels for several generations by this time. Rome had abandoned Britain for more than a century and the Church in Ireland was evolving in relative isolation as Pagan tribes occupied much of the remainder of the Continent with the decline of the Roman Empire. The missions from Celtic Church were about to shine forth the light of the Gospels to Britain and spread the word of God's love to Northern Europe.

Early Life & Education

From childhood he was destined for a religious vocation although it is believed that he was by birth a possible successor to the high King of Ireland. Columba entered the monastery of St. Finian at Movilla where he studied theology and the arts of copying and illuminating sacred texts and became a deacon of the church. His love of words led him to also study with the bard Gemman from whom he learned the traditional poetry and ancient traditions of the Gaels. Several hymns and poems composed by Columba survive to this day.

Columba's love of books and his talent with words are still among his most famous attributes. In Ireland and Scotland today it is a popular folk belief that the Book of Kells was penned by the Saint's own hand. The oldest surviving Irish manuscript, a manuscript of Psalms known as the 'Cathach' is plausibly his work. The Book of Kells, a fantastically illuminated copy of the four Gospels, was actually created around 200 years after Columba's death.

The First Copyright Dispute

A chain of events began when Columba was aged forty that led him to leave Ireland. By this time Columba was a priest and had founded numerous churches and monasteries. He traveled widely and was already an important leader of the Church. These were exciting, optimistic times for a young growing Church. They were however violent times as well and as we shall see. The clergy was no less immune to getting mixed up in political and clan rivalries then than in times since.

The trouble began when Columba secretly made a copy of a book of Psalms, Mosaic Law and the Four Gospels known as St. Martin's Gospel. The book was property of his friend Finian of Movilla. When Finian discovered the copy he angrily demanded the copy be given to him as his rightful property. Columba insisted that the copy did not in any way diminish the original and demanded that High King Diarmid judge legal ownership. The King handed down what may be the first recorded copyright judgment with the words: "To every cow her calf, to every book its copy." and thus upheld Finian's claim against Columba.

There are many legends in Ireland about St. Columba's anger and short temper. Many Irish to this day when cutting peat for fuel will leave a step in the turf bank because of the legend that after falling while crossing one of these banks Columba angrily cursed any peat cutter who would not leave a step so that others could easily cross. Columba's anger went beyond cursing when ownership of the book was judged against him.

The Battle of Cuildrevne & Exile

In a very un-saintly way Columba rallied his family and friends against the King. Historians are skeptical that the book judgment alone is actually what led to the bloodshed. The factions already had strained relations, but popular tradition puts Columba's rejection of the King's ruling as the cause of the Battle of Cuildrevne. The King was defeated but at the cost of thousands slaughtered.

The King appealed to the Church for Columba's excommunication. A synod was held and Columba's friend Brendan of Birr argued for Columba and his confessor and soul friend St. Molaisse advised as penance he accept lifelong exile from Ireland. A remorseful Columba welcomed this punishment and set sail for Scotland to win as many souls for Christ as had been lost in the battle.

Founding of Iona

With twelve companions Columba set sail in 563 A.D. to the north and after stopping at Oransay and Islay, where the shores of Ireland were still visible, he landed on the tiny island of Iona at a shore now known as the 'Port of the Coracle'.

Iona and the surrounding islands of the Hebrides were occupied sparsely by the Picts. Other Irish Gaels prior to Columba and known then as the Scots were establishing settlements in southwest Scotland and created a Kingdom called Dalriada in the area now called Argyll. Columba traveled north to Inverness to visit the Pagan Pictish King Brude. He initially did not convert Brude but he did become friends with him. Brude granted Iona to Columba and his monks and gave him safe passage to preach and conduct his mission. Diplomatically Columba also visited the Irish ruler of Dalriada, Conall mac Comgaill, who also granted Iona to Columba.

To the Dalriad Scots Columba was soon to become their local spiritual authority. When King Conall died in 574 Columba was called upon to ordain Áedán as his successor and is thus the first king in Britain to receive the blessing of the Church as a mandate of legitimate rule.

Mission to the Picts

It is to the Picts in the North that Columba found fresh converts to the Faith. Like the pre-Christian Irish, the Picts followed the religion of the Druids. Columba preached, baptized and ordained among them in much the same way that Patrick ministered to the Irish a century before. For many years, before he was superseded by St. Andrew, he was the patron saint of Scotland. From his base on Iona his little band of missionaries branched out and founded churches and monasteries that soon reached to England and beyond.

So influential did the Abbey at Iona become that soon it was a center for Christian education for Ireland as well. The warrior holy man of the Battle of Cuildrevne preached God's love in his new land. His skill as a diplomat and his respected spiritual authority helped lessen the level of warfare in those violent days. The artistic tradition that is exemplified by the Book of Kells spread to England and Europe. The Book of Kells itself may well have been created on Iona to commemorate the 200th anniversary of St. Columba's death or it may have been completed at Kells in Ireland when Viking raids forced the evacuation of Iona to Kells around the year 800.

The Heron from Ireland

The story of Saint Columba and the Heron tells how the Saint foresaw the visit of a tired and injured "visitor" from Ireland. He sent one of his monks to the western beach to wait for it and an exhausted heron arrived. The monks fed and cared for the bird until it could travel again. Colum Cille himself was an exile from Ireland, so the lonely visitor from his beloved home was of symbolic significance.

Death & Legacy

Columba lived to the age of 76 years. Tradition records that he knew that he was soon going to die and that he wanted to leave this world at Eastertide. He reconsidered since he did not want to make the feast a time of mourning for his brethren and waited a little longer. On his last day he was carried to the fields where the monks were working and blessed the crops. An old white horse which had carried the brothers' milk for many years approached him and rested his head on Columba's shoulder and was seen to weep tears. When he returned to his cell the Saint took up his pen and worked at copying Psalm 34 and stopped at the tenth verse, "but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing", and stated that someone else would have to finish it. He died at the altar of his church at the midnight service. His feast day marks his passage to heaven on the 9th of June 597.

The Celtic Church of Columba's day was not as divided as the church was in future generations. The Celtic and British Church was independent of Rome due to its isolation and separate development. The year of Columba's death, 597, was the same year that Augustine was sent by the Pope to bring British Christians under the authority of Rome. Traces of the distinctly Celtic interpretation of the faith that took root in those early days survive in the heritage of the Catholic, the Anglican and the Church of Scotland. The Church of Scotland is of course the progenitor of the Presbyterian Church.

A Christian community has rebuilt the Abbey on Iona and it is once more a center of worship, study and pilgrimage.

About Stephen Walker

Stephen Walker is co-author of The Modern History of Celtic Jewellery: 1840-1980 and serves on the advisory panel for the George Bain Collection at Groam House Museum, Scotland. He has been handcrafting Celtic crosses and jewelry in Andover, NY since 1984.

Learn more about Stephen & Susan Walker →

From the recovery after the Irish Potato Famine in the 1840s to the booming Celtic Tiger of the 1990s, a revival of the ancient traditions of Celtic jewelry has become a part of how the Irish, as well as the Scots, Welsh and other Celts have expressed their cultural identity. Usually the story of this tradition focuses on very old prototypes—the museum pieces turned up by archaeologists or the legend of the original Claddagh ring. In our imagination, we connect the popular Celtic jewelry of today with the distant past. But that link with the ancient style was very much influenced by what others had done in more recent history.

Four Experts, 150 Years of History

The story is told by four authors, each bringing unique expertise to this comprehensive history:

Why History Matters to Our Craft

Understanding the history of Celtic jewelry isn't just academic interest—it directly informs the work we do at Walker Metalsmiths. When Stephen designs a new Celtic cross or trinity knot piece, he draws on decades of research into how these traditions evolved. This scholarly foundation is what separates authentic Celtic jewelry from mass-produced imitations.

The Celtic Revival masters like George Bain and the Ritchies of Iona established the visual language that contemporary Celtic artists like John Urban and Stephen Walker continue today. This unbroken lineage of craft knowledge is what we mean by "Celtic Renaissance."

About Stephen Walker

Stephen Walker is co-author of The Modern History of Celtic Jewellery: 1840-1980, serves on the advisory panel for the George Bain Collection at Groam House Museum in Scotland, and has been handcrafting Celtic jewelry in Andover, NY since 1984. His scholarly research directly informs every piece created at Walker Metalsmiths.

Learn more about Stephen & Susan Walker →

The Problem of Interpreting Ancient Symbols

When talking about things Celtic we have to remember that things change through time and place. What meaning may or may not have been for the monks that illuminated masterpieces such as the 9th century Book of Kells is not necessarily the same meaning expressed by users of Celtic design in more recent years, but there is a popularly held notion that it is or ought to be.

While it may be reckless speculation to claim a certain symbolic meaning as the original intent of an artist working in the Dark Ages, we should not dismiss that an artist working in our own times intends a symbolic message in the same type of design and that that meaning is valid in context. The problems that occur are a result of there being very little consensus among artists about Celtic symbolism and the perception that the symbolism suggested has been gleaned from an ancient source. The naive believer hopes that the symbolism offered by a modern artist or craftsman is an authentic legacy from the past. The skeptic thinks this is very unlikely and considers it fanciful fakery.

Trinity Knot Jewelry Collection →

What Art Historians Say About Symbolism

The more you study Celtic Art, the less urgent the issue of symbolism becomes. Art historians are consumed with problems of timeline, place of origin and migration of styles and ideas. Artists and designers who work with Celtic themes today are more interested in creative applications and technique. Work with a message is likely to be spelled out in words or conveyed with figurative images or more universally recognized symbols such as crosses, doves or hearts. Yet the most common question from the public about knotwork is, "What does it mean?"

For the contemporary Celtic artist or craftsman, explanation of symbolism can be more of an answer to what may be an awkward question. "Can you show me the knots that means 'love, health or strength'?" What an opportunity for creative marketing! We have absolutely no hard evidence that any such meaning were ever intended by the ancients, but this has not stopped modern designers from attributing such meanings. Art historians have been very shy about even speculating about the possible symbolism of Celtic Interlace. To look for a pat explanation from the scholars is a disappointment. Many go as far as stating that interlace was historically used purely for decoration and that suggestions of any symbolic intent are not supported by credible research.

The Triquetra: A Case Study in Interpretation

The case of the triquetra or three-fold knot is a good example of the difficulty that one faces when trying to assign specific meaning to Celtic designs. Sacred numbers and the symbolism of numerology offer a promising basis for the interpretation of Early Christian Celtic ornament. The triquetra is an obvious sign of the Holy Trinity. Other knots could represent the four directions, the twelve Apostles and so on. But as important as numbers are in Scripture, legends and poetry, the connection remains elusive and evidence circumstantial.

Triquetra Earrings

The Triquetra in Modern Times

When the triquetra stands alone it certainly looks like a symbol, but in early Christian Celtic venues it rarely does. If the triquetra had formerly been used as it is now, we would have no reason to doubt its function as a symbol. In modern times it has been customary to display designs alone that would have been details in older work. These stand-alone details are frequently seen in books about Celtic Art or on modern day Celtic craft objects.

When a single knot appears alone, as say a pendant that is a single triquetra, it seems as if it must be a symbol. Given the Celt's penchant for blessings and invoking the Holy Trinity, the meaning of the triquetra seems more obvious than any other knotwork. The triquetra is quite commonly called the "Trinity knot" and has been consciously used as a Christian symbol during the 150 years of the Celtic Revival. In recent decades it has also been appropriated as an emblem of the "Triple Goddess" by Pagan revivalists. When someone plucked the triquetra out of antiquity and it stood alone in modern times, this was a creative act and the triquetra was no longer just a pretty space filler.

Celtic Cross Jewelry Collection →

From International Style to Symbol of Identity

Celtic interlace, or attempts at something that looked like it have been made in every century since the Insular style first emerged in the 7th century. At first interlace was being used to decorate Gospels and symbols of Christian faith such as crosses. Religious and secular use of Celtic Art cannot be seen as expressing any national identity prior to the Norman invasion, especially when it is recognized that at this time several peoples—the Irish, the Picts, the Scots of Dal Riada and the Northumbrians—all had artists that excelled in the style.

The nearest neighbors, the southern Anglo-Saxons, the Welsh and many continental religious communities also produced manuscript decorations in the Celtic or "Hiberno-Saxon" tradition. During the "Golden Age" of Celtic art, 7th to 10th centuries, the style and vocabulary of ornament was an international style throughout the region.

The Celtic Revival: 19th Century Renaissance

Weapons and jewellery associated with the Jacobite movement continued to be decorated with knotwork until 1745. At this point the longest gap appears in the continuity of use. Little, if any knotwork was produced from then until the dawn of the Celtic Revival in the mid-1800's.

The earliest Celtic Revival monuments are from the 1860's. In both Scotland and Ireland monumental carving was and remains the most conspicuous uses of Celtic design. Many of the most elaborate earlier monuments of the Celtic Revival are the gravestones of priests. Recognition of the legacy of the Celtic Church was being expressed with the creation of new "High Crosses" both as public monuments and as grave markers.

Common Modern Interpretations

Why would it be that continuum would be such an important concept that an elaborate symbology as knotwork would be contrived? In modern times those who maintain an interest in Celtic things, be it Celtic music, dance, religion, folklore or history, may relate to the idea of continuum in their desire to affirm and preserve a culture they value, nobly surviving despite centuries on the margins of European mainstream.

Among Celtic Diaspora, those emigrants and their descendants whose interest in their roots have become a passion are especially likely to relate to a message of continuum as they strive to maintain an identity with their heritage in the multi-cultural melting pot of the New World. If the modern motive for creating or viewing Celtic knotwork involves a sense of heritage, the message of continuum seems to work.

About the Author

Stephen Walker

Stephen Walker is the founder and Master Craftsman at Walker Metalsmiths. With decades of study in Celtic art history and hands-on experience creating traditional designs, Stephen brings both scholarly knowledge and artistic practice to understanding Celtic symbolism.

Note from the author: My thanks to members of Celtic_Art @ eGroups for their discussion and debate of the issues of meaning and symbolism during January 2001. The chance to kick around these ideas with a cross-section of imaginative, passionate and knowledgeable contemporary Celtic artists and designers was of immense value.

Learn more about Stephen & Susan Walker →
Read Stephen's book: "The Modern History of Celtic Jewelry" →