The Cross of CongThe Coronation Stone is resonant of a time when the O'Conors were Kings, not only of their province Connacht, but for a time, of Ireland. Without doubt the greatest O'Conor King was Turlough Mor O'Conor, High King of Ireland in the 12th century AD and who left us many reminders of his reign.
The most significant of these is the Cross of Cong, commissioned in 1123 to carry a piece of the 'True Cross' around Ireland, as the King processed through the nation to accept the submission and tribute of the provincial rulers. This magnificent work of art is made of oak sheathed in metal. The front and back are decorated in bronze panels of animals interlacing and the central crystal on the front of the Cross is surmounted by a panel of spiral filigree in gold. Around the margins are settings of glass and enamel enclosed in circular frames.
The sides of the cross are covered with silver and bear inscriptions in Latin and Irish, one of which reads "a prayer for Turlough Mor, King of Erin for whom this cross was made".
Turlough Mor should also be remembered for the great Chancel Arch in St Mary's Cathedral, Tuam and the High Cross in Tuam, Co Galway, both of which he commissioned. On his death in 1156, Turlough Mor O'Conor was buried beside the High Alter in St Kieran's Church at Clonmacnoise, the famous medieval Monastic City on the banks of the River Shannon.
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