Shankill: Crozier's return marks Belfast church's 150th year
- Published
The crozier has returned for one day to where it was discovered
A ninth century bishop's crozier has been displayed at St Matthew's Church in the Shankill on Tuesday as it celebrates its 150th anniversary.
The artefact was discovered in the grounds of Shankill Graveyard 300 years ago.
It has been returned for one day only as part of an exhibition celebrating the social history of the church.
Dr Bernard Gilhooly, from the National Museum of Ireland, said the crozier was "so precious" for historians.
"The crozier gives us an idea of how people lived, how they worshipped, the manufacturing processes, everything to do with early Christian Ireland," he said.
The star item at the exhibition will return to the National Museum of Ireland's keeping in Dublin after Tuesday's event, which has been facilitated by Queen's University Belfast (QUB).
The Greater Shankill Partnership exhibition also includes photos, other artefacts and displays.
St Matthew's Church is known in Belfast for its distinctive shamrock shape and it is believed the crozier may have been held by a bishop during Viking raids.
Dr Gilhooly said it showed signs of Irish, Saxon and Viking influences in its design, with the stone a Baltic amber.
For the rector of St Matthew's, Rev Tracey McRoberts, the crozier's presence is a link that tethers the past to the present.
"Faith goes on from age to age," she said.
Rev McRoberts says the crozier has allowed people to get in touch with the history of the Shankill area
"We have seen everything in this part of the world and we know that also part of that was that we are from a land of saints and scholars."
One of the historians involved in the event is Olwen Purdue, Professor of Social History at QUB.
"The people of this area have seen wars, they've seen conflict," she said.
"They've seen the growth of the city and they've seen people move away.
"They've also just experienced everyday life and in that everyday life, there's so much to celebrate and so much of interest."