July 2005 - Dublin Ireland
We had never visited the Church of St. Michan in Dublin and thought it would be a good place to take our niece and nephew on their first trip in 2005. St. Michan's was first built in 1095, possibly on the site of an early church constructed by the Viking Danes - Michan was said to be an old Danish saint, though records in Christchurch Cathedral suggest that he was an "Irish saint and confessor", while other theories suggest he was a Dublin Norseman, thus incorporating both other ideas. on their first trip to Dublin.
We were the only visitors and our guide was extremely well-informed, and a bit of a character. You enter the vaults from outside and climb down through slanted metal doors into long corridors, with chambers on each side.
Our guide said the air in the vaults is extremely dry due to the consistency of the soil and the steady unvarying temperate.
This is my niece's face when I tell her she can touch a corpse and a great fortune would come to her.
I didn't take any photos inside, I think we were told "No photographs".
I did find some at another site and am posting one of his.
Four mummies are on view inside an inner chamber - with a few random skulls lying around beside them.