The other day we wended our way across the landscape, seeking out places to explore and photograph.
I felt duty bound to amend for the statue of last week. So our first stop was on the banks of Lough Owel in Co. Westmeath, a Lughnasadh site where horses were ritually bathed in it’s waters.
Today it is the home of a beautiful statue, created by Linda Brunker, that stands proudly over looking the lake.
I felt duty bound to amend for the statue of last week. So our first stop was on the banks of Lough Owel in Co. Westmeath, a Lughnasadh site where horses were ritually bathed in it’s waters.
Today it is the home of a beautiful statue, created by Linda Brunker, that stands proudly over looking the lake.
The Children of Lír
The rich aroma of freshly made coffee wafted across the car park and as I turned I saw a three wheeled vehicle, complete with full sized coffee machine in the back. Two double shot expressos were ordered and quickly served by the camera shy operator.
Revitalised we headed to our next stop which, according to Mrs H’s research, would provide us with some rich material. I misdirected her on to a very narrow country road, which was not without interest, for there were two donkeys on the lawn of an empty house.
We finally arrived at Abbeylara where Mrs H found a holy well and visited the ruin of the Cistercian Abbey and I spotted a jolly gardener in the school grounds.
The Jolly Gardener.
Cistercian Abbey.
Onwards then to Ardnacliffe, Co. Longford and to Lough Gowna,
‘the lake of the calf’. The name comes from a legend about a supernatural calf which escaped from a well and raced northward with a stream of water following it. The flooded area became the lake and the mysterious calf is said to still live beneath the waters.
Not a calf but a horse visiting the waters at Lough Gowna.
We parked on the banks of very attractive small lake- Lough Leebeen known as 'the lake of the small fish' possibly the Stickleback. It sits quite literally on the outskirts of the village.
The tranquil Lough Leebeen.
Turning for home our next stop was at Ardagh to see the beautiful statue of Midír and Etain by the artist Éamonn O'Doherty.
For an account of their story see the Lady Gregory version here:
Midír and Etain
Awesome pics, friend H ... thanks for sharing ... Love, cat.
ReplyDeleteAm so glad that you enjoyed your visit Cat x
DeleteLough Leebeen looks beautiful and I like the statue of Midir and Etain. (I will read their story later.)
ReplyDeleteThank you for your interest Sue and I trust that you will enjoy the story.
DeleteThe drive looks blissful. The statues are exceptional. And you always create a little magic for me. Some of our best discoveries have resulted from misdirection. We love getting lost.
ReplyDeleteHello Mitchell, what I omitted was the number of coffee breaks that we took throughout the drive. You right about the fruits of misdirection for they often turn up such wonderful gems. Thank you for the comment.
DeleteThe sculptire is rather Escher like somehow
ReplyDeleteYes, I see what you mean Simon thank you for your interest.
DeleteThank you for sharing this beautiful spot. I've become a bit of a metal statue fan since traipsing through Scotland and looking at Andy Scott's work, so I appreciated this post a lot. Cheers. xx
ReplyDeleteHello Anne-Marie thanks for your appreciation, I think some sculptors and artists tend to explore and develop themes.
DeleteHeron, there really are some absolutely beautiful statues here.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely Pat and a few more to see yet, so watch this space :-)
DeleteThank you for visiting.
Wow!!! I thought the first sculpture was incredible and then you showed me the second one, I'm very impressed.
ReplyDeleteThank you Janet and you can come over to do a tour of them too ;-)
DeleteA much needed breath of fresh air! Thank you.
ReplyDeleteYou are very welcome Carol and thank you for visiting.
DeleteHi Mel - what a lovely day out ... just going down unknown lanes is always fun in the country - those donkeys happily looked on ... I love the Children of Lir sculpture - wonderful artwork ... as too your tour for us - something I'd love to do - one day! Cheers Hilary
ReplyDeleteThank you Hilary, am sure that you would have a very enjoyable visit.
DeleteA beautiful meander, Mel! The statues are lovely, but I was most taken by the donkies. I'd guess they must have been playing truant! What sweet faces they have. The photos are really beautiful!
ReplyDeleteIt most certainly was a very interesting day, so glad that you liked donkeys :-)
DeleteI particularly like the work by Linda Brunker. At first I thought it was a windswept tree but it was a delight to an Escher-like construction! I searched for more of her stuff and it's mostly very beautiful; a real talent and Irish too!
ReplyDeleteCLICK HERE for Bazza’s fabulous Blog ‘To Discover Ice’
Thank you for the admiration and comment.
DeleteArt and ancient building swill always have a certain individuality. Your three-wheeled coffee supplier immediately reminded me that I had queued up behind an identical one at a school swimming gala in New Zealand in February. It truly is a small world these days. I have to say that I thought the statue of Midír and Etain rather severe.
ReplyDeleteThank you Graham, for your comments and observation. Regarding the interpretation of the statue of these mythological beings, every person who looks deeply at these figures will form their own impression. I do agree that Midír looks severe.
DeleteLovely images! Thanks for the tour of the beautiful places you visited.
ReplyDeleteThank you Bill and welcome to Herons View
ReplyDeleteLovely tour of Irish legends and statues, Ireland is such a beautiful country and the donkeys were cute.
ReplyDeleteSo glad that you enjoyed the tour Thelma and thanks for the comment :-)
DeleteMel , you have the most interesting travels around the countryside!!!
ReplyDeleteWe do, we do Gwen and we have lots of fun on our days out too :-)
DeleteThe two statues are stunning, you are very lucky to have such beautiful artwork around you. We have those little coffee vans round here, they are very cute xxx
ReplyDeleteThank you Fran :-)
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