Mochóemóc (Pulcherius)

Mochóemóc (Pulcherius) , monastic founder and saint in the Irish tradition, of Liath Mochóemóc (‘Leamakevogue’ – now Leigh (Leighmore), Co. Tipperary). No dates can be assigned to Mochóemóc's life, but his father, Beoán, is said to have belonged to the Conmaicne of Connacht, and his mother, Ness, is described as a sister of Íte (qv) of Killeedy. The Latin form of his name reflects the Irish cóem (beautiful). His Life is preserved in both Latin and Irish, the latter – as yet unpublished – being an apparent translation of the former. No doubt because his church was relatively unimportant historically, Mo-chóemóc's Life has attracted little attention; James F. Kenney (qv) dismissed it in a mere two-and-a-half lines as ‘evidently late and largely fictitious’ (Sources, 455). However, many pointers in this Life indicate that its author was not directly associated with Leamakevogue, but rather with the neighbouring Cistercian house of Kilcooly. Among these is the casting of Mochóemóc in a deferential pose towards Bishop Colmán, whose church of Daire Mór was located at Mag Airb (Arvicampus), the site of the Cistercian monastery of Kilcooly. A Cistercian provenance is also indicated by other associations established for Mochóemóc by his biographer, including his resuscitation of a dead man near Inis Lemnachta (Inislounaght, Co. Tipperary), where the Cistercian house de Surio was in existence by 1148. The saint himself is credited with a biblical age of over 400. His feast-day, which is twice used as a point of reference by the compiler of the Annals of Ulster (s.a. 1109, 1119), was 13 March.