BY JOHN FITZGERALD
The city celebrates a special “birthday” this month
21 years ago, Treasures of Kilkenny saw the light of day. The stunning publication offered us a look at some of the old charters and civic records of Kilkenny City, dating back to the 13th century. The Kilkenny City Archive is the oldest set of such records in Ireland after Dublin. Its documents chart via their studiously wrought minutiae eight centuries of urban life in Kilkenny and show how it evolved through war, famine and changing times.
The book was the brainchild of then Mayor Betty Manning, who was deeply committed to preserving and promoting the city’s heritage at a time when Kilkenny was still recovering from the shock of a government bid in 2000 to downgrade its status from that of a City to a town.
That had caused a political storm, sparking outrage and large public protests, because Kilkenny had been a city since the granting of a charter by King James 1 in 1609.
Mayor Manning’s idea of opening up the ancient city documents to the public came to fruition thanks to a very special Kilkenny man: John Bradley; a historian and archaeologist at NUI Maynooth.
He had already authored scores of papers and several books, his publications including numerous studies focused on his native city and county. His book Discover Kilkenny (2000) remains one of the best guides, with its mix of tourist appeal and scholarly research. He was also a joint editor of Themes in Kilkenny History (2000).
Award-winning local photographer Tom Brett would provide the pictures for the large square volume with its lusciously designed hard cover.
Treasures of Kilkenny was aptly-named because the trove of documents known as the Kilkenny City Archive has been stored at the Tholsel (City Hall) since the Middle Ages. The book deals mainly with the pre-1600 documents, with Bradley providing explanations, commentary and in many instances pain-staking translations into modern English, and Tom Brett adding the visually striking pictures that bring history to life.
Access to the archives was all the more significant and appreciated given that they’d been kept under lock and key for so long. In the Middle Ages they were stored in a jealously guarded chest within the Tholsel. This had three locks with three keys. One key was held by the Sovereign, the second by the Alderman, and the third by the City’s Senior Sherriff.
By the 17th century the archive had been moved to a wooden cabinet in the Town Clerk’s office. In the 1800s it was stored in a fire-proof safe and to this day the documents remain in the Town Clerk’s office.
Treasures of Kilkenny tells the whole story of the city through an impeccable presentation of the documents, each chosen snippet both shown in graphic form, compliments of Tom Brett, and thoroughly analyzed by John Bradley. The book also includes pictures of the Civic Insignia: the sword, mace, and hand-maces at City hall that have long enthralled tourists and official visitors with their glinting silver and carvings.
So, a huge debt of gratitude is owed to John Bradley and Tom Brett for their collaboration on this project…the endless hours of trawling through the archives and the photographic skills applied to make the documents visible to us all.
Sadly, John Bradley passed away in 2014 at just the age of 60- a devastating loss both to archaeology in Ireland and to Kilkenny, the city he loved and whose unique mediaeval heritage he devoted his life to promoting. His commitment to conserving the remnants of the ancient City Wall in particular was outstanding, and unmatched by any of his academic contemporaries.
More recently, Tom Brett also departed this world. His work as a photographer spanned decades and his memory will live on through his thousands of pictures in books and newspaper files.
Betty Manning is still thankfully with us. She recalls with pride the arrival of Treasures of Kilkenny on book shelves and believes that it will continue to serve as a vital reference for future generations, and to take its place in the homes of Kilkenny folk here and abroad.
Though retired from politics she’s as dedicated as ever to the ideal that inspired Treasures of Kilkenny. She shares a view held by many in the city and county: that the best tribute to the memory of John Bradley would be to ensure the preservation, to its utmost, of what remains of Kilkenny’s heritage and antiquities.
