Kells Crozier
- Gallery: Room 41
- Culture: Celtic
- Made in: Ireland, Republic of
- Date: 9thC-12thC
- Object type: crozier
- Materials: wood; copper alloy; silver; niello
- Museum number: 1859,0221.1
- Museum: The British Museum
- Collection record: British Museum website
- Image © The Trustees of the British Museum, shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.
Listen to the free audio guide
About this object
Before you is the Kells Crozier, a striking example of early medieval Irish craftsmanship. This crozier, or pastoral staff, combines a wooden core with a silver crook and a copper alloy staff. Rich with decoration, it features intricate animal forms, openwork patterns, and a distinctive human head motif.
Look closely and you’ll spot a small silver crook and copper alloy sheet—once part of its original fitting but later replaced with silver mounts. An Old Irish inscription runs along the piece, quoting the words: “Ordo Conduilis Ocius do Mel Finnenn”—a phrase that hints at the legacy and reverence connected to this object.
This crozier was made in Ireland sometime between the 9th and 12th centuries. It was eventually purchased in 1850 by Cardinal Wiseman, after being found locked away in a long-forgotten cupboard. The piece may even date back to the collection of the 18th-century bishop Richard Pococke, adding layers of historical intrigue to this remarkable artifact.
See it in person
Kells Crozier is on display in Room 41 at the British Museum on Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London — free to enter. Choose British Museum on audioguide.london and take a photo of it to hear this free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
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