Objects associated with saints in early Ireland were often preserved after the saint’s death and these relics were encased in precious metal shrines. A belt belonging to an unknown saint was found in Moylough, Co. Sligo in the 1940s by local man John Towey when he was cutting turf. The leather belt was encased in a bronze shrine. This was richly decorated with silver, glass and enamel. The Moylough Belt Shrine dates from the eighth century and is one of the great treasures of early Ireland.
This temporary display at Turlough Park has now ended and the Moylough Belt Shrine has returned to the Museum of Archaeology, Kildare Street.