Home
Fr. Prout
Poem
The Structure
Opening Times
Tours\Schools
Church Weddings
Memorials
Curator
Views of Shandon
Historical Dates
Love Story
Engagement
Contact Us\Genealogy
 
Church of St. Anne Shandon
Church Street
Cork City, Ireland
Please send mail to the Church:
Tel: 353 21 4505906
The Bells
Our 8 bells, were made by Rudhalls of Gloucester. They weigh over 6 tons and they first rang out over the city on December 7th 1752 for the marriage of Henry Harding and Catherine Dorman. They were recasted in 1865 and in 1906 they were hung in a fixed position so as to reduce vibration. It was said that when the bells were rung in a swinging position the patients in the local hospital, the North Infirmary Charitable Hospital shook in their beds.

The original inscriptions are retained on each bell:
  • When us you ring we'll sweetly sing
  • God preserve the Church and King
  • Health and prosperity to all our benefactors
  • Peace and good neighbourhood
  • Prosperity to the city and trade thereof
  • We were all cast at Gloucester in England by Abel Rudhall 1750
  • Since generosity has opened our mouths our tongues shall sing aloud its praise
  • I to the Church the living call and to the grave do summon all
Bell cords
The last bell, the tenor, weighs 26cwt. and also bears the name Daniel Thresher, a great benefactor of the Church, who, in his will, left money to provide this bell. It was the same Daniel Thresher who provided the Church of St Anne with a single bell before the peal was introduced. This bell, dated 1745, now hangs in the Church of St. Mary in Sundays Well. Our world famous bells can be rung on the first floor.
The Tower
Shandon Tower The walls of our building are 7 feet thick and the height to the tower is 120 feet and to this you can add another 50 feet for our pepper pot. The McOsterich family were involved with the design and erection of this tower and to this day a special privilege is afforded them. Whenever a member of the family marries, anywhere in the world, the bells ring out in their honour. On top of this pepper pot is a weather vane in the form of a salmon, representing the fishing of the River Lee. It is a very appropriate sign to have on top of a Church, as in the earliest Christian days a fish was used as a symbol for the name of the Lord.
The Clock
Our famous clock, known to Corkonians the world over as "The Four Faced Liar" on account of the time being slightly different on each face during the hour. The reason for this is, the numbers on the faces are made of wood and gilded, some of the wood is thicker than others and so some hands stick when they reach these numbers, but on the hour they all come together. Shandon Clock
The Fish
Our fish is painted in Gold Leaf and is approximately 13 feet in length. It represents the Lord, in that, in the old days the Lord's name was signified by the sign of a fish. It also represents the Salmon Fishing on the local river Lee and in Irish Mythology the salmon was the "Fish of Knowledge". Today it is used as a weather vane. It is called "De Goldie Fish" by Corkonians and people in the Northside live under "De Goldie Fish".
The Christening Font
Christening Font, dated 1629, is a relic from the Church destroyed in the siege of Cork in 1690 and bears the inscription, "Walter Elinton and William Ring made this pant (which was the Anglo-Saxon word for Font) at their charges". Within is a pewter bowl dated 1773. Christening Font
Our Books
We have in our Church some 17th century books. Some of which came from the first library in Cork City and some came from the Green Coat School that was attached to this Church.
Top of page