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Clonegal Castle
Tour of the Temple of Isis
Other links of interest:
Recent Temple Updates
Photo Gallery of Clonegal Castle
Castle Events
Clonegal Castle was first built in 1625 in Enniscorthy, Ireland. The basement Temple, complete with dozens of altars and shrines to a multitude of Goddesses and Gods, is the Foundation Center for the Fellowship of Isis. "Clonegal Castle lies on the banks of the River Derry, "Doire", The Grove of the Oak, upstream before it joins the Slaney, "Slainte", River of Healing. Matriarchal Centres were situated between the two rivers on the Crow´s Foot, "The Macha", Crone form of The Goddess Morrigan. The confluence of our two rivers gives the name to our village Clonegal - Cluan i Gabhla, named after Eithne of the Long Fork." (Quote by Olivia Robertson from the DCD Manual.)
The following Temple of Isis tour is from the booklet, Clonegal Castle, published by Lawrence Durdin-Robertson in 1990. The section on the Foundation Center Temple was written by his sister, Olivia Robertson, who gave permission to include this section here in 2006.
The photos in this tour are courtesy of Olivia Robertson, Minette Quick, and Ashera, to whom we convey our gratitude. When possible, older photos have been used in order to correspond to the text. When compared with the current Foundation Center Photo Gallery, they give you an idea of how the many shrines and altars have evolved over the years.
The Temple of Isis Tour
Clonegal Castle - East Wing
Temple of Isis Portico
"The Temple of Isis occupies the old basement of the Castle. It is approached through a double door. Facing one on the wall is an Ankh, “The origin of life”; above it is a solar wheel divided in 12, representing the signs of the zodiac. Above the doors is a mask of the Goddess Neith carved in box-wood by David. To the right of the doors is a Halcyon bird in painted Tulip-tree wood, also by him. Down some granite steps, on the left is a wall. In front of this is a carving of a Goddess presented by Archpriest Michael Okoruwa of Nigeria. Beyond that is the bell, formerly from the old chapel.
Entrance to Temple Gate
"Through a heavy iron gate one comes to the well enclosure with the well, believed to date from Druid times. It has 15 feet of water and is reputed to have healing powers and is now dedicated to the Goddess Brighid of the Tuathe de Danann. People may anoint themselves on their forehead from water left out in a silver basin on the Sagittarius altar. To the north is a window looking out on to the Dana Temple or old Abbey. In the North East the old Druid well, believed to date from pre-Christian times.
Entering the Well Chapel
Well Chapel
Chapel of Brighid
Olivia at the Ancient Well
"This chapel contains the shrines of Libra, with a reredos by William Morris; Scorpio, opposite to it on the right, and Sagittarius on the left and in the North a window looking out on to part of the Abbey. Against the North East wall is the sign of Capricorn. Over it hangs a tapestry woven by Liesbeth Fomkert from Seisal. It depicts the "Gate of Life".
Shrine of Libra
Shrine of Scorpio
Shrine of Sagittarius
"A doorway to the right, leads to the Adytum, the "holy of holies" dedicated to Ishtar, with some pictures by various members of the F.0.I. also a picture of Dana, facing the door, by Olivia Robertson.
Entrance to Ishtar Chapel
Chapel of Ishtar, Holy of Holies
photo © 2007 M.Q.
"Through another door of the adytum is the treasury, containing many engravings and pictures of the Goddess. Back through the iron gate, on the left is a Tibetan bell, of an amalgam of eleven metals which when struck gives a resonance; and on the wall facing it is the sign Virgo, depicting Isis raising Osiris from the dead. To the left of this is another of a "Cairo cloth" depicting the Mother-Goddess, Mut. To the left of this is another of the Black Isis.
Virgo Altar
"Opposite these is the granite trilithon entrance to the dungeon. It was last used as a place of confinement in 1921, when the IRA took over the Castle.
Granite Trilithon Entrance
Continue to Part 2 of the Tour
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