Re: Re: reorganisation and destruction of irish catholic churches

@johnglas wrote:

Prax: maybe not, but these two churches are interesting examples of another ‘type’: not romanesque nor gothic nor baroque, but of a kind of academic classicism often described as ‘cold’ or ‘sterile’ but which in fact is aesthetically very pleasing and has stood the test of time. (I think the activities of the wreckovators can easily be reversed.)
Fascinating background to the ‘Conversion’ mural – it certainly needs to be protected before it is vandalised by accident or design. Is the church still open? I’m reminded of that other great ‘Conversion’, Caravaggio’s in S. Maria del Populo. It was likened to ‘an accident in a blacksmith’s’ because of the prominence given to the horse’s rear end, but along with the crucfixion of St Peter in the matching chapel on the other side of the sanctuary, it is one of the most stunning displays of ecclesiastical artwork anywhere.

PS I notice that St Mary’s still has what looks like the ‘original’ altar (from 1820?), which must be a rare survival.

It did strike me that that the altar probably comes from the earlier church – if not from the first chapel. The design is very similar to that in the chapel of Wardour Castle – designed by Valadier, if memory serves one correctly.