Irish Archaeology
Sharing Ireland’s amazing archaeology as well as interesting sites and finds from around the world.
In the parish of Kilmore, in the very south of Co. Wexford, persists a peculiar funerary custom that may have medieval origins. It involves members of the funeral cortege leaving a cross, traditionally fashioned from left-over coffin wood, at a specific tree. Overtime this custom has led to many crosses collecting around the ‘sacred’ tree, […]
A new analysis of bones taken from a century-old excavation at Carrowkeel in County Sligo has revealed evidence of the burial practices and death rites of the ancient people of Ireland. The findings, which have been published in the journal Bioarchaeology International, are part of a project applying modern techniques and research questions to the human […]
This wonderful collection of decorated initials is found on a 9th century Irish manuscript which now resides at the Abbey of Saint Gall in Switzerland. Founded in the 7th century AD by an Irish monk (St. Gall), the abbey has an extensive library that contains a small but important corpus of Irish material. This includes a […]
This medieval Irish poem about trees is taken from a text known as Aidedh Ferghusa meic Léide (the Death of Fergus). In the poem, Iubhdán, the king of the fairies, advises the ruler of Ulster, Fergus mac Léide, on the special qualities of trees and which ones can be burned in the household fire. The […]
Whit Sunday (or Whitsun) is an important Christian festival that celebrates the Pentecost. It normally falls on the seventh Sunday after Easter and in Ireland it was sometimes considered a ‘contrary day‘. As a result it was surrounded by a rich folklore tradition, much of it concerning ‘bad luck’. For example, people or animals born […]
This fantastically preserved collection of household utensils was discovered during archaeological excavations in Waterford city. It includes two wooden spoons, a wooden beetle/pestle and an iron knife (with attached handle). The artefacts were found in contexts dating from the 11th to 12th centuries AD and were preserved due to the damp, largely anaerobic conditions which […]
The magnificent Muiredach’s cross at Monsterboice, Co. Louth. Standing at over over 5m tall, it represents one of the finest pieces of early medieval sculpture in Ireland. It is undoubtedly the work of a master stonemason (or team of stonemasons) and the art historian Roger Stalley has suggested that the same person may have also […]
A rotary quern stone (hand-mill) for grinding grain which was reused as a grave marker at Clonmacnoise during early medieval period. Founded in the 6th century AD, Clonmacnoise was one of the great monasteries of early Ireland and several hundred memorial slabs have been found at the site. This specific one is inscribed with the […]
French archaeologists working in the town of Uzes in southern France have uncovered the remains of a well preserved Roman mosaic dating from circa the 1st century AD. It was discovered inside a large stone structure that had a floor plan of roughly 250 m². Open to the south, the presence of a colonnade suggests […]
These Old Irish names are taken from the country’s corpus of ogham stones. Consisting of a series of incised linear lines, ogham represents Ireland’s very earliest form of writing. It is typically found on standing stones, especially in the the south and southwest of the country, where there is a remarkable concentration of these monuments. The […]