The year 2024 marks the 1500th anniversary of the death of St Brigid of Ireland (c. 450–524). It was once customary to make a cross of rushes or straw – known as a St Brigid’s Cross – on 31 January, the eve of her feast day (Oiche Fhéile Bhríde). Crosses were then hung up in houses, and sometimes in cowsheds and stables, to honour the saint and to gain her protection for the household and their animals.
There were once many types of St Brigid’s crosses. Some were very simple and easily made, while others were more intricate and required great skill and patience. From the 1960s onward, Telefís Éireann (RTÉ) adopted a type of St Brigid’s Cross that was more common in Leinster as its logo, and gradually – through the influence of television – it became the best-known and most-popular type.

Join Brendan McGowan, Education Officer at Galway City Museum, to learn about some of the folklore and traditions associated with St. Brigid and her feast day and have a go at making some different types of St Brigid’s Crosses.

This is a drop-in workshop, so booking is not required. Parents and guardians must remain with children.

Suitable for families of children aged 7+