Ireland and Bobbio – The Columbanus connection
Bobbio is a small, beautiful town in Northern Italy, located at a crossroads between the regions of Emilia Romagna, Lombardia, Liguria and Piemonte. The region has a strong connection to Ireland, and a long tradition of Irish visitors. The reason for this is St Columbanus, one of Ireland’s three patron saints.
Columbanus was the first of the Irish missionaries and scholars to make a home on the European continent. After leaving Ireland, he travelled through France and Switzerland, founding monasteries along the way.
He arrived at what is now the town of Bobbio, along the banks of the river Trebbia around the year 614, and founded his Abbey. He died shortly afterwards and is buried in the crypt of the Abbey of St Columbanus, leading to this strong and centuries-old bond between Ireland and Bobbio.
It is fitting that the exhibition, 'Ireland and the Birth of Europe', commissioned by the Department of Foreign Affairs in 2023 to mark 50 years of Ireland’s membership of the European Union, will be displayed in Bobbio throughout the entire summer of 2024. Curated by Professor Damian Bracken and Doctor Angela Byrne, it is hoped that the exhibition will have a permanent home in Bobbio going forward.
Ireland’s Ambassador to the Holy See, Frances Collins, was proud to open the exhibition in Bobbio's stunning Abbey Museum, next to the impressive Mazzolini collection on 24 June 2024.
In her address, Ambassador Collins noted that St Columbanus’ and his disciples are credited with the foundation of over 100 monasteries throughout Europe.
“With their emphasis on learning, Columbanus and his followers contributed to the shaping of a European heritage that endures today. St Columbanus and his many followers were not only missionaries: they were ambassadors for our small island, earning for it the title of ‘Island of Saints and Scholars’.”
Recognising St Columbanus’ contribution in the region, Bishop Michael Duignan of Galway and Clonfert said it was an emotional experience to see the exhibition launched in Bobbio, after attending the XXV Columban Day gathering in Piacenza the previous weekend.
“It is beautiful and profoundly moving to see the esteem, emotion and veneration that St Columbanus is remembered with in these parts.”
Before the exhibition launch, the Papal Nuncio to the EU Archbishop, Noel Treanor, celebrated Mass in the crypt of the Abbey where St Columbanus' tomb is located. The Mass was concelebrated by a number of Irish and Italian Bishops and Priests.
To visit the exhibition and the Mazzolini collection in Bobbio, please see opening hours on diocesipiacenzabobbio.org. The exhibition panels are available in both Italian and English.