St. Iberius' Church ( ) is an 18th-century

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

church in the centre of

Wexford Wexford ( ; archaic Yola dialect, Yola: ''Weiseforthe'') is the county town of County Wexford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the ...

, Ireland, dedicated to Saint

Ibar of Beggerin Ibar may refer to: People * Ibar of Beggerin (died 500), Irish saint * Íbar of Killibar Beg, Irish saint * Hilmi Ibar (born 1947), Kosovar academic * José Ibar (born 1969), Cuban baseball player Places * Ibar District, a division of the Serbia ...

(Iberius). Designed by

John Roberts John Glover Roberts Jr. (born January 27, 1955) is an American jurist serving since 2005 as the 17th chief justice of the United States. He has been described as having a Moderate conservatism, moderate conservative judicial philosophy, thoug ...

, the interior is Georgian in style, while the exterior is

Renaissance Revival Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th-century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range of ...

. It is a protected structure.

Building history

It is believed that there was an earlier (

Pre-Reformation Catholic The history of the Catholic Church is the formation, events, and historical development of the Catholic Church through time. According to the tradition of the Catholic Church, it started from the day of Pentecost at the upper room of Jerusale ...

) church on the site dedicated to local saint

. The current building is believed to date from some time after the Restoration of King Charles II in 1660. In 1690, the Rector of St Iberius, Alexander Allen, accused then Mayor of Wexford, Edward Wiseman, of inciting vandals to demolish the

altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...

and

pews A pew () is a long bench seat or enclosed box, used for seating members of a congregation or choir in a synagogue, church, funeral home or sometimes a courtroom. Occasionally, they are also found in live performance venues (such as the Ryman A ...

and steal

vestments Vestments are liturgical garments and articles associated primarily with the Christian religion, especially by Eastern Churches, Catholics (of all rites), Lutherans, and Anglicans. Many other groups also make use of liturgical garments; amo ...

and books. St. Iberius' was rebuilt in 1760–66 to a Georgian style. A

cast iron Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content of more than 2% and silicon content around 1–3%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloying elements determine the form in which its car ...

bell in the church is dated "1816." John Elgee, grandfather of the poet Jane "Speranza" Wilde (herself mother of

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Fflahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish author, poet, and playwright. After writing in different literary styles throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular and influential playwright ...

), was curate and rector at St. Iberius'. The church is built to a cruciform plan and is wider than it is long (supposedly to fit next to the old

town walls A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or Earthworks (military), earthworks to extensive military fortifications such as ...

), with an upper

gallery Gallery or The Gallery may refer to: * Gallery (surname), a surname Arts, entertainment, and media * Art gallery ** Contemporary art gallery ** Online art gallery Music * Gallery (band), an American soft rock band of the 1970s Albums * ' ...

which was used originally to seat Wexford's large population of soldiers. The building was refronted some time around 1882, producing the present facade. The

organ Organ and organs may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a group of tissues organized to serve a common function * Organ system, a collection of organs that function together to carry out specific functions within the body. Musical instruments ...

was installed in 1893. In 1930, a prayer desk was added in memory of Dr Thomas Dowse. Restoration work took place in 1990, with balustraded serpentine communion rails being moved to St Iberius from

St. George's Church, Dublin St. George's Church is a former parish church in Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Designed by Francis Johnston (architect), Francis Johnston, it is considered to be one of his finest works. The structure is located at Hardwicke Place, jus ...

. The tower with octagonal spire is inspired by

Venetian Renaissance architecture Venetian Renaissance architecture began rather later than in Florence, not really before the 1480s, and throughout the period mostly relied on architects imported from elsewhere in Italy. The city was very rich during the period, and prone to fire ...

. St Iberius is known for its excellent

acoustics Acoustics is a branch of physics that deals with the study of mechanical waves in gases, liquids, and solids including topics such as vibration, sound, ultrasound and infrasound. A scientist who works in the field of acoustics is an acoustician ...

and is commonly used for concerts. In 1996 a Russian pianist won a Kawai

grand piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

in a competition, but rather than bring the piano back home, he sold it to St Iberius'.

Gallery

File:Wexford St. Iberius Church E 2012 10 03.jpg, Northeast facade Ordnance Survey Ireland Cut Bench Mark - geograph.org.uk - 4530533.jpg,

Ordnance Survey Ireland Ordnance Survey Ireland (OSI; ) was the national mapping agency of the Republic of Ireland. It was established on 4 March 2002 as a body corporate. It was the successor to the former Ordnance Survey of Ireland. It and the Ordnance Survey of ...

benchmark Benchmark may refer to: Business and economics * Benchmarking, evaluating performance within organizations * Benchmark price * Benchmark (crude oil), oil-specific practices Science and technology * Experimental benchmarking, the act of defining a ...

at the south entrance of St Iberius' File:St Iberius' church, Wexford 2.jpg, Donation boxes made from Second World War

artillery shells A shell, in a modern military context, is a projectile whose payload contains an explosive, incendiary, or other chemical filling. Originally it was called a bombshell, but "shell" has come to be unambiguous in a military context. A shell c ...

. File:Wexford St. Iberius Church Tower Two-Light Window 2012 10 03.jpg, Two-light window in the tower with polychrome brick File:Wexford St. Iberius Church Organ 2012 10 03.jpg, Organ File:Wexford St. Iberius Church Capitals 2012 10 03.jpg, Decorated

capitals Capital and its variations may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** Capital region, a metropolitan region containing the capital ** List of national capitals * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Econom ...

File:Wexford St. Iberius Church Baptismal Font 2012 10 03.jpg, Baptismal font

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Iberius' Church, Wexford Iberius Iberius Iberius Iberius Wexford, County Wexford Georgian architecture in Ireland