Where a Viking Sleeps.

On a recent day out we visited St James Church, Castledermot, Co. Kildare.

The original foundation and dedication of this Christian Church was as the hermitage of St. Diarmada [Dermot] in 812. In later years it became a monastery and was twice raided by the Vikings and was burned down in 1106.

In the present church, now dedicated to St James, there is a list of The Church of Ireland incumbents dating from 1605 to the present day.

In the foreground is a reconstructed Hibernian-Romanesque arch detailing the original entrance to the old church.

An artists impression of what the original hermitage may have looked like.

The only Scandinavian hog back grave marker slab in Ireland - beneath which is possibly 

a sleeping Viking.

One of two existing 9th century High Crosses, 

there were once three.

Opposite the entrance to the church is a well kept and attractive tree lined walkway 

connecting to a main thoroughfare.

The Pledging Stone.

Similar stones were used by lovers who would place their hands into the hole 

and make their pledge to each other. 

From this practice came about the phrase ‘being set in stone’.

The round tower dates to the 10th century and was the monastery bell tower. 

The tower has some unusual features to other similar constructions. Here the entrance is only slightly above ground level and it is situated to the north of the church, normally towers were built to the west with access 15 feet or more above the ground. 

There are two arched vaults inside the tower, one over the second storey and the other at the top, with the tower itself constructed mainly of granite blocks with small pieces of limestone used as fillers. 

At sometime during it’s history the original stone capping was removed from the top and replaced with a castellated top which looks very odd - I have heard it likened to that of an electric torch stood on it’s end!

For further information :-

http://www.megalithicireland.com/High%20cross%20castledermot.htm

http://roundtowers.org/castledermot/index.htm

DELIGHTFULLY DISSOLUTE !

On my full spoon sits a portion of delicious Rocky Road sundae, while in the foreground

looking delicious and untouched is Mrs H's Salted Caramel sundae !

So here we are again enjoying ourselves by massaging our taste buds with an orgasmic mix of chocolate and ice cream at The Chocolate Garden, Rathwood, Co. Wicklow.

I know of at least one other person who will be tormented by reading this and I am not at all ashamed :-)

We needed after having quietly consumed and sated ourselves. A leisurely modicum of gentle exercise and so in warm sunshine we drove a couple of miles to the East and a walk

around Rath Gael. Actually walking was the last thing my body was calling for it said

"Sleep, sleep you would enjoy some pagan dreams amid these old stones" I denied my eyes and merely sat listening to the grass growing.

RATH GAEL

Rescue at Brownshill Dolmen

The 5,000 year old Brownshill Portal Tomb, 

Kernanstown, Co.Carlow 

Poor Granny has a 150 tonne capstone on her head!

Grandpa assists Ollie to lift what is reputed to 

be Europe's largest capstone off Granny's head.

After the lift the Druid's Apprentice checks the energy,

to make sure all is as it should be.

The next stage is to do a rhythmic step dance

to seal the energy force.

On his final inspection of the portal tomb Ollie

discovers a Wooly Caterpillar.

The rescuers and the rescued are refreshed with ice creams

at the Chocolate Garden in Rathwood, Co. Wicklow.

Ollie takes Granny on an assault course to improve

her dexterity.

Ireland's Leaning Tower

Recently we made a return trip to the Burren. On leaving the market town of Gort we took
a different road than on our last visit, though still heading  towards county Clare.
Noticing a round tower in the distance and being inquisitive,we drove down to take look.
To find ourselves at the ruined cathedral of Kilmacduagh whose founder was St. Colman who is reputedly buried within the vicinity of the tower and the mortuary chapel.
Others say he was reburied in Aughrim however, his burial slab still remains in Kilmacduagh.
This slab is known locally as having a cure for backache for any sufferer who lies on St.Colman’s grave receives a cure.

The round tower itself is believed to be the highest in Ireland, almost thirty-four metres tall with a diameter of five and a half metres.
Its’ noticeable lean towards the southwest, of about half a metre, is most likely due to having shallow foundations, making it Ireland’s equivalent to the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

The ruins of St. Colman's Kilmacduagh Cathedral
where people still like to be buried.

The Hynes Abbey sits in front of Ireland's Pagan past.

Map showing route in from the R460 to St. Colman's Cathedral

For more information please visit  :-http://www.megalithicireland.com/Kilmacduagh%20Round%20Tower,%20Galway.html

Brian Boru and Old Magic

Cashel town

On Saturday morning we were up early (for us) to drive down to Cashel in Tipperary in order to meet with some friends. They were also driving down from somewhere in Cork.

Has that confused you ?

Here in Ireland no matter where you live or in what direction you are going the phrase used is ‘going down to’, people who live on the south coast will 'travel down to’ places in the north.

For a few days I had been keeping an eye on the weather forecasts to see what we could expect.

On Saturday morning there was an orange alert for a high, west wind and heavy rain with a variable temperature of 4 to 7 deg C. 

"Damn to hell" I thought that can’t be right, "ah’ we will give it a go anyway."

So we did.  As we left home the temperature was 5.5 deg C but after a few miles it rose to 7.4 degrees. I sat in the front passenger seat and in my mind kept focussing on seeing blue skies over Cashel.

When stopped for a while in Urlingford to have a sandwich we had sleet falling on the windscreen. That did not deter me though as I kept on focussing on fine weather. We arrived at our destination, the temperature had risen and it was dry but with a chill wind. We finally met our friends and repaired to a pub.We sat in a window seat chatting away and drinking coffee. Nothing stronger as alcohol during the day makes me sleepy and I recall, when I was a 'dry’ driver, how annoying the fumes of strong drink could be.

Towards the end of our meeting a burst of sunlight shone through the window and as I looked up the sky was blue. “Ah-hah the old magic still works” I thought to myself.

The Rock of Cashel

Outside the pub we said our goodbyes and returned to the car park in a strong biting wind, we were very glad of the shelter that the car provided. 

On leaving the town I asked her Ladyship to pull over so that I could take a photo of The Rock of Cashel from whence the town of Cashel gets its name.

In the 5th century, the Eóganachta dynasty founded their capital on and around the rock and many kings of Munster have reigned here. In 977 the Dál gCais usurper, Brian Boru, was crowned here as the first non-Eóghanacht king of Cashel and Munster in over five hundred years. His great-grandson, King Muirchertach Ua Briain, gave the place to the bishop of Limerick in 110, denying it forever to the MacCarthys, the senior branch of the Eóganachta. 

The bishops once had a famous school in Cashel and from there sent priests all over the continent.They even maintained their own monastery, called Scots Monastery, in Regensburg, Germany.

These days Rock is under the care of Heritage Ireland whose scaffolding can be seen over Cormac’s Chapel.

The project underway currently involves conserving the chapel, built from sandstone, which has deteriorated to such an extent that it is letting in water. 

A notice on their web site explains that access to the Chapel is limited from May till September each year for bus tours until the work is completed. Visitors are admitted in small groups for 10 minutes maximum.

We had a great day out and by the time we had returned the temperature had risen to 10 deg, which proves that it is unwise to believe everything that the experts tell us.

Our next adventure will be ……. ah you will have to wait and see :)

Return to Fore in Co. Westmeath

St. Benedictine Priory circa 1200

Amazing what a change of light has done

to this shot of the priory

In the foreground the pre norman structure of St Feichin's Church

pronounce Feichin as Fekkin.

The building with stone tower further up the hill is the anchorites chapel, which is an extension to the hermits cell which was occupied up until the 17th century

For further information please visit

http://www.megalithicireland.com/Fore.htm

&
http://aheronsview.blogspot.ie/2010/04/seven-wonders-of-fore.html

Old Ways

The old homesteads in the landscape of Ireland are very distinct and give a hint of the old ways of living, being close to the earth and open to the elements.

The first abode is a Rath which was built as a pre Christian settlement complete with a defensive ditch, similar to the Norman motte and bailey but with a lower mound. 

Part profile of a Rath

The defensive ditch strewn with fallen timber, which

the owners are generally loath to remove, for fear of

retribution by the faeries which now inhabit this place.

Part of the top of the Rath which is now scattered with thorn trees.

An old mountain cottage now derelict believed to have been occupied by a forester and his family, consisting of four or five rooms, it has a pathway leading to a stream from where the family would have drawn water.  It is located in a glen between steep mountain sides. As attractive as it looks in sunshine. Living there would have been an entirely different matter for the damp and the cold would have seeped through it's stone walls.

This picture shows a group of New Travellers in their bow-topped wagons camped on the edge of bogland during the winter. Sadly this way of life has now been denied, due to the local authorities closing off the old camp sites. Many are the happy hours that I enjoyed when sitting around the fire drinking tea and yarning on my frequent visits.

Photo taken early 1990's

If you think that your family has never been labelled as a Gypsy then look here
http://rtfhs.org.uk/useful-links-genealogy-sources/
or
http://website.lineone.net/~rtfhs/journal2.html
and here
https://www.familytreedna.com/groups/celtic-traveller/about/background

A Bronze Award.

It is really good to be asked to do something which you enjoy and watch a project go forward to become a success. I was asked by Dr. Jenny Butler, a Folklorist at UCC, if I and my druid grove would be interested in taking part in a documentary film that Tile Films of Dublin were proposing to make. 

I sounded out the members of the Owl Grove for their views and a majority decision was made so we contacted the film company. 

About a month before the filming was to start two members were unable to take part. As I had set the number at twelve participants I approached an old friend of mine from years back who was living down in Co. Waterford, as I knew she was a druid. Fortunately for me she agreed to take part and bring along one of her sons who is a fluent Irish scholar. The rest is history.

Today, I am delighted to be able to congratulate the executives and staff of 

Tile Films who were awarded a Bronze World Medal for their 45 minute documentary film Sacred Sites: Ireland.

Not only is it a great achievement for Tile Films, based in Dublin, it is also great for Ireland.

****

The Owl Grove members who took part were:

Áine-Maire, Claire, Colin, Flynn, Fred, Jane, Majella, Mel, Patsy, Rita, Siobhán and Vinnie.

To view film Sacred Sites : Ireland

http://www.newyorkfestivals.com/winners/2015/pieces.php?iid=478629&pid=1

You can read my posts about the filming HERE and HERE

Winter's Last Refrain

Where the snow still sits was once the home of glaciers 8,000 years ago.

The landscape that we see today, hills, valleys and rivers, were shaped by the melting of the glaciers. As large chunks of ice broke off and slid downwards, sweeping away the alluvials before, them they carved new shapes in the land. All of that is so easy to see and appreciate just before the last snow of winter melts away.

We travel this narrow road several times a week and only when a photo is taken do we actually see the beauty of its' form with all its' twists and turns.