St Patrick's Catholic Church Glen Innes sign

ST. PATRICKS CATHOLIC Church is a relatively small congregation in Glen Innes, New South Wales. This is a community with strong Celtic roots, founded by Scottish settlers and home of the Beardies Festival which celebrates its roots each year. Also home of the Standing Stones and the annual Celtic Festival which takes place in May, hosting thousands of visitors, with music, dancing, bagpipes, dog sheep trials, and almost anything else from jousting to a Roman encampment.

There are two church buildings at St. Patricks – the original church which was built in the 1870’s and the present building (circa 1908). Danthonia created this handcrafted sign with the Celtic theme of St. Patrick and the town of Glen Innes in mind – most specifically, the shamrock. Traditionally, the shamrock is said to have been used by Patrick in 5th century Ireland to describe the Christian doctrine of the trinity. This tradition appeared in 1675 on coins called ‘St. Patrick coppers’ or halfpennies, which appear to show St. Patrick preaching to a crowd while holding a shamrock in his hand.

In rendering this symbol, we hand sculpted three shamrocks and gilded them with 23kt gold leaf. The main text incise carved and gilded as well. A top trim added extra dimension to this hand crafted sign, and an additional sub sign was added with flat painted informational text. The signs are made of high density urethane, which has the same density, weight and feel as wood, but will outlast wood since it will not split, warp or rot.