Knigh Castle: A Christmas Haunting

Knigh Castle near Puckane in North Tipp.
There is a sad bit of folklore attached to it to featuring Christmas Eve.
"It is said that when the Normans were routed out of the castle, a poor man and his son went to live in it. This son took sick. One morning he was very ill, but still his father went out to work. When he returned at night his son was dead. The man was so heart-broken after him that he laid down by his side and died. This was on Christmas eve. If a person went up to the castle on a Xmas eve you would see a man and a boy lying on the ground floor. The man is seeing crying and his son is by his side dead."

http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922134/4855176

Tyone Abbey

This is a view that not many people get of Tyone Abbey as when you pass it on the Thurles Rd it seems like the small remains of a fairly basic ruined church.

Another view that most people don't get is the perilous state of this very important building which is the oldest religious building in Nenagh.

This arch in the main section of the abbey is in a very precarious state.

Other side of the arch

I happened to meet the landowner of the surrounding lands when I visited. He thought that I was from the OPW and wanted to talk to me about vital repairs that are required to make these monuments safe. Unfortunately he told me that the site is stuck in a bit of a bureaucratic limbo with a number of different bodies involved in it and none wanting to tackle the issues here.
It is my own personal view that this arch will not last another winter here if we get storm winds like the last few winters. This arch is a vital structural component of the north wall of the abbey.

On a brighter note here is some information on the site from the onsite information board:

"Was founded about 1200AD, by Theobald Butler, who also founded Nenagh Castle. It was given to the Canons of St. Augustine, they were famous as preachers. It was dedicated to St. John the Baptist, hence the name Tig Eoin (Tyone), the house of John. The Monks, who wore black, were obliged to care for the sick and traveler.
Irishmen were forbidden admission as monks, but this changed with the decline of Norman power. The monastery held a considerable acreage of land and tithes of over a dozen parishes. The now ruinous building would have consisted of a dormitory, refectory, kitchen, sick bay, church and cloister."

I've not seen any reference to what look to me like some architectural fragments installed in this north wall of the abbey. The one marked with the red arrow looks to me like a carving of some kind of animal.

Another interesting features is this standalone bit of masonry which I understand was part of a staircase at one stage.

And from within the window of this feature.

One piece of interesting folklore I found relating to the abbey relates to a secret passage linking it with Nenagh Castle.

http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922136/4855793

"There is a secret passage from the Nenagh Castle to Tyone Abbey, to Lisboney and to Barrach St. Abbeys."

As they say, there is always a secret passage!

Another piece I found in an old Nenagh Guardian article:

Nenagh Guardian - 31-12-1932

"An unusual piece titled "The Fairies of Munster" -"Did you ever hear of a place called Nenagh?" he asked "Yes" said I "I have heard of it" Well "said he "I was born and reared within a few miles of that town" "It is a fine town, I suppose" said I "Well, it is and it isn't" he replied. "It is a great place for fairs, to be sure. In fact, the original name of the town was Aonach, which meant a fair. "At one time there used to be a great fair at a place called Tyone, a mile or so outside the town, every 1st August. In fact that date was known locally as the "1st of Tyone". It was not far from a rath, known as Rathurles, and the fairies from there gave so much trouble at the fairs that they had to change the fair to the town." "Not into the town surely" said I, "there must be a fair green in such an important town". "There is not; then" said he "The cattle are in the very streets and right up against shop windows" I suppose the idea is "said I "that the shopkeepers want to keep the trade at their doors". "By no means" said my friend "but they are afraid if they hold the fair outside the town the fairies might interfere with it, for they are averse to the smoke and dirt of a town. They love the fresh air, and that is the reason there is no fair green in Naenagh". "Well now" said he "it was in this district I was in the fairies and next time we meet I will tell you about my experiences during the seven happy years I spent amongst them" - it is signed off as "Old Boy".


For more detailed information on the history of the abbey, Dermot F. Gleeson wrote about it here http://www.jstor.org/stable/25510135 -

I haven't found a freely accessible version so if anyone knows of one please pass it on to me.    

New discovery at Killowney Little via aerial archaeology

I was doing a little research on a completely different topic (looking at the Kennedy castle at Killowney Big) when I went looking at some of the older aerial photos on
http://maps.osi.ie/publicviewer/.
There on the (year) 2000 aerial photo of the area was a massive crop-mark to the North-west of the castle. I presumed it must have been previously recorded but decided it was worth a look on the Sites & Monuments Record. Amazingly it had never been spotted before. It was probably just because in this particular photo it looks as if some kind of cereal crop had been sown or possibly reseeding had been carried out.
I posted on an archaeology group about it and as luck would have it Colm Moriaty did a bit more research on the Irish Folklore Manuscripts and found some more information on it.
Coincidentally it was me who had originally transcribed the scan but didn't link the two together!

 http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922139/4856034/5012309

"On the eastern side of the Jackson estate Mountpleasant in the field known as Kyle is what is locally known as The Burying Pit. Approaching it from the southern side you enter a small hollow and find yourself facing a large flat rock. A vague tradition exists that Mass was celebrated at this rock at intervals during the penal days. That people were buried in front of this rock and around it is certain as human bones have been unearthed there from time to time.
The place is known as The Burying Pit though when and why it got that name is not known. Tales are told of mysterious lights seen hovering around this place at night time."

So it was known locally as "The Burying Pit". I passed this all on to the local NMS archaeologist and he was delighted to include it on the Sites & Monuments Record. He has classed it as an ecclesiastical enclosure and described it as follows;

"Cropmark of large roughly circular enclosure or natural hollow (approx. diam. 130m N-S; 120m E-W) visible on Digital Globe aerial photographs taken between November 2011 and March 2012. The only upstanding section of the original bank survives at NE where it is incorporated into the present townland boundary. According to the folklore from Ballinree School in the Schools Collection, this field was known locally as the 'Kyle' and the large circular cropmark was known as 'The Burying Pit' (The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0536, Page 243-4). In the centre of the small hollow or enclosure there was a large flat mass rock where mass was held during the penal times. According to local folklore people were buried in front and around this mass rock and in the past human bones have been unearthed around the mass rock and it was reported that mysterious lights are seen hovering around this place at night time. This last piece of folklore may suggest that the hollow area was not used as a 'Mass Pit' during penal times but also as a possible children's burial ground. Possible ecclesiastical enclosure based on its large size and the fieldname of 'Kyle' which was re-used in penal times as a mass pit and possibly as a children's burial ground. Alternatively the site may have been a large ecclesiastical enclosure with burials inside the enclosure dating from the medieval period."

Its the first time finding something purely from aerial photos and from the comfort of my own home. This is something anyone with internet access can do. So if you have an interest in history or archaeology get on to the aerial photos here and try and find something that hasn't been discovered before.

http://www.bing.com/mapspreview
https://www.google.com/maps
http://maps.osi.ie/publicviewer/
http://webgis.archaeology.ie/historicenvironment/

St Martin's Day in Tipperary

It seems this saints day relates to another agricultural milestone, when the wheat seeding would be completed and winter preparations complete (for more info see there). There is some confusion whether the killing of the cock is done on St. Martin's Eve (10th Nov) or St. Martin's Day (11th Nov). Its not a feast day that I ever recall hearing of growing up but I have something in the back of my mind about perhaps a neighbour doing it that I will check out.

Here is some folklore from the Irish Folklore Commission about St. Martin's Day in Tipperary. There seems to be a good geographical spread (and I may have missed a few of them) so it must have been fairly widespread.

From Portroe

http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922149/4856473/5011453

"St Martin's day is on the 11th November and the day before it is St Martin's Eve. On this Eve it is the custom to kill a fowl of some kind and to spill its blood behid the door in honour of St. Martin. The blood is spilt while flowing from the wound on the fowl's neck.
It was a custom in Ireland long ago that no wheels should be turning on St. Martin's day. Now that has died out but still on threshing is done.
If a pig or any animal were sick the owner of it would offer it to St Martin and then it was supposed to get better. But it would have to be killed and its blood offered to St Martin on the next 10th November. Some people when the animal is all right, kill it, and use its blood, but in almost every case when this is done the meat would go bad. It was also a custom that the people would make the sign of the cross on the foreheads of the family with the blood."

From Boher near Ballina

http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922156/4856756

"On the 11th of November the Irish people keep the feast of St. Martin. They practise various customs on the 10th of November, the Eve of the feast. The following customs are practised in Boher :-
The killing of the Bird.
The people kill a cock or a duck or a goose on St. Martin's Eve. They cut the bird on the head and spill the blood at the threshold of the door and on the four corners of the kitchen floor in honour of St. Martin. Some people kill a pig in honour of St. Martin. I heard Mrs. Bray, Scragg telling a story of a family who lived in Portroe named Creamer. They promised a pig to St. Martin. On St. Martin's Eve they killed the pig. But they thought it a pity to spill the blood. Instead they filled puddings with it. Then they gave nothing to St. Martin and the pig went bad in the barrell.
On St. Martin's Day no mills used to work long ago. The mill-wheel would not turn because it is said St Martin was ground up in a mill.
The old people would never tackle a horse on St. Martin's Day for if they did they believed the horse would not work well any more. About six years ago my father worked a lately trained mare on that day. Grandfather remarked that he should not have done it. She brought one load of manure out of the yard but kicked at the second. We never had any satisfaction with her after that and we had to sell her."

From Ballydrehid

http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922278/4866788/5022268

"In St. Martins day a hen was killed at the fire and as the blood was spilled around the kitchen in honour of St. Martin." 

From Killaneave

http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922146/4856346/5016371

"Saint Martin's day is on the eleventh November. It is celebrated by killing a young duck or goose or a cock. The blood is spilled on the threshold of the door. People say it is unlucky if this is not done. My Mother always does and my Grandmother before her."

From Dundrum

http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922309/4869022/5051620

"On St. Martin's day each year a chicken is killed and the blood is sprinkled around the kitchen in honour of St. Martin. On the 11th of November this feast day occurs. This act is said to prevent sickness for the year."

From Mullinahone

http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922236/4863168/5053285

"There is a tradition that it is unlucky to work mills on St. Martin's Day because St. Martin was ground up in a mill.

Most people in this district used to kill a cock on St Martin's Day in former times. The cock was killed at the back door and was brought around the house, the blood being sprinkled on the four corners.

If blood of fowl were not spilled inside door on St. Martin's day people believed that all fowl would die."

Halloween Traditions in Tipperary

Some folklore about Halloween from Toor near Newport in North Tipp.

"People do not practice the old customs nowadays as much as they used long ago.
They got a tub of water and they put an apple floating in it. They all knelt down around the tub with their hands behind their backs. They began to dive for the apple and whoever got it ate it.
They made a wooden cross and they put a lighted candle and an apple on each alternative beam. The cross was put spinning around and each tried to grab the apple in his mouth. Very often the candle was grabbed instead of the apple.
Then the grown-up unmarried girls sat around the fire. One girl took the key of the door in one hand and the spoon of melted lead in the other. When she dropped the lead through the key it made a certain figure -
If it made a ship she would marry a sailor.
If t made a spade she would marry a farmer.
If it made a sword she would marry a soldier.
After this they went out in "cabbage haggard" and pulled the first "head of cabbage" they left a hand on.
If it was a "stout head" she would marry a stout, wealth man and if it was a thin "scraggy head" she wood marry a poor man. Next they went out and they heard somebody calling the future husbands.
They filled a saucer with water another with clay and another with string. Each person was blindfolded and they put their hand on a saucer in turn.
If you touched the clay you would soon die.
If you touched the water you would cross the sea.
If you touched the ring you would be married.
Now the tea was made and the "Barmbrack" was cut. This contained a piece of cloth and a stick and a ring.
Who ever got the ring would marry.
Who ever got the cloth would be a nun.
Who ever got the stick would never marry.

http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922161/4857216/5016283

Some folklore about Halloween from Toor near Newport in North Tipp.
"People do not practice the old customs nowadays as much as they used long ago.
They got a tub of water and they put an apple floating in it. They all knelt down around the tub with their hands behind their backs. They began to dive for the apple and whoever got it ate it.
They made a wooden cross and they put a lighted candle and an apple on each alternative beam. The cross was put spinning around and each t...ried to grab the apple in his mouth. Very often the candle was grabbed instead of the apple.
Then the grown-up unmarried girls sat around the fire. One girl took the key of the door in one hand and the spoon of melted lead in the other. When she dropped the lead through the key it made a certain figure -
If it made a ship she would marry a sailor.
If t made a spade she would marry a farmer.
If it made a sword she would marry a soldier.
After this they went out in "cabbage haggard" and pulled the first "head of cabbage" they left a hand on.
If it was a "stout head" she would marry a stout, wealth man and if it was a thin "scraggy head" she wood marry a poor man. Next they went out and they heard somebody calling the future husbands.
They filled a saucer with water another with clay and another with string. Each person was blindfolded and they put their hand on a saucer in turn.
If you touched the clay you would soon die.
If you touched the water you would cross the sea.
If you touched the ring you would be married.
Now the tea was made and the "Barmbrack" was cut. This contained a piece of cloth and a stick and a ring.
Who ever got the ring would marry.
Who ever got the cloth would be a nun.
Who ever got the stick would never marry.

http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922161/4857216/5016283

Some more folklore involving Halloween from near Upperchurch.

One such superstition concerns the nuts. Many girls will take two nuts and place them side by side on the kitchen fire there to watch them steadily together eager to learn the secret of their lover fidelity. One of the nuts is called the boy and the other nut a girl. But if the nut, which is called the boy jumps, then her lover is untrue and she had best be on the track... of another before it is too late. Then again if the nut which is called the girl jumps, then his lover is untrue, and he had best be on the track of another before it is too late. But if the two nuts stand steadily together it is said, that the boy and the girl would be married.
Another superstition concerns the ring. On the night before Halloweve people buy a "Barn Breac". The ring which would be in the "Barn Breac" makes most of the fun. First of all the breac, is cut up into slice. Then the slices are served on the plates to the people, at tea time. The person who gets the ring is supposed to be the first of the company to marry.

http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922170/4858158


Halloween is celebrated by several games. It is on the thirty first of October. Halloween is a very merry night. The neighbours gather into a certain house that night. They play games such as The three Saucers, the Snap Apple, diving for apples and other games. Some old people put money in a deep basin and the children fight to see who'll get it. After the games the young people sit by the fire and listen to the old people tell stories about the fairies. Young people are generally afraid to go out on Halloween as they say "the Pooka and fairies are out".

http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922146/4856346/5016371

"There be Danes", Maps of the Castletown Arra area

4000 - 2500 BC Neolithic Castletown Arra from Archaeological Excavations at Tullaheady County Tipperary by Rose Cleary & Hillary Kelleher

I have wondered why I have been able to find a relatively large amount of monuments in the Castletown Arra area.

One theory I have is that its relative inaccessibility prevented it from being explored and mapped by the various invaders and colonisers to the area. Really this theory is just an excuse to show off lots of old maps for the area!

This map (above) from Archaeological Excavations at Tullaheady County Tipperary by Rose Cleary & Hillary Kelleher has always fascinated me. It shows the likely water levels during the Neolithic around the Castletown Arra area. From my reading of it, this area would have been a practically a large island, cut off with just one landbridge just south of Tullaheady.

Castletown Arra was a half-cantred or mini Barony during the Anglo-Norman times and the main clan were the O'Briens. There are still the ruins of a number of O'Brien castles in the area.
I'm not going to pretend I'm an expert on this period but some of the old maps I have found of the area are very interesting and suggest that during the various surveys of the area it might be that it was "skimmed" over a bit.

The first historical map I look at is by John Speed in 1610. This is taken from the excellent http://www.swilson.info/index.php

One is of the whole of Ireland

In this the main features you can make out is the likely O'Brien castle at Pallamore marked as Palace (on the above) and you can make out what I assume is Nynag or Nenagh. Also interesting is the note on "The 12 great Hilles of Phelim"

The other is a more detailed map of Munster

This one again shows Palace and this time Caernonogher which I assume is Carrigatoher. Family names are McBryne Arra which I assume are the O'Briens and the three clans of the O'Kennedys - Roe, Done & Fyn or Red, Black & White. This would be the last time these clans would own these lands on the maps.

Between 1656 - 1658 a survey was done to enable redistribution of lands following the Crowellian & Williamite Wars in Ireland known as the "Down Survey"

There is a suggestion in Dermot F Gleeson's book "The Last Lords of Ormond" that the surveyor William Petty did not in fact do a new survey of Ormond (and I presume this would extend to the Castletown Arra area) but in fact used the info from a previous survey and still charged for it!
This map is available online at http://downsurvey.tcd.ie/index.html - unlike a lot of other areas in North Tipp the parish surveys are not available for Castletown Arra which would allow us to drill down further into this map. I'm not sure if this is an error with the site (I have contacted them) or whether they are not available. Many of the maps from this survey were lost during the fire at the Customs House in Dublin during the Irish Civil War. I'm leaning towards the later and that they are no longer available.
In this map you can make out the church and other buildings at Castletown near Castlelough. A church at Youghalarra graveyard and a castle at Pallasmore. There also seems to be a church and some other buildings at Burges, I'm thinking that is the graveyard at Burgesbeg.

This 1695 map shows the main settlement in Castletown Arra switching from Pallasmore to Castletown. Map available here.

This 1838 map shows the rough terrain of the area and also it is the first that I've found to mention the slate quarries.
Also interesting to note are the copper mines at Lackamore near Newport where I believe some of my ancestors worked for a time. The copper mine here might also point to one of the reasons why this area is so rich megalithically, perhaps prehistoric copper mining attracted settlers to this fairly remote place?

Next we see one of the 1840s OS maps - these maps show a lot of detail (particularly when you drill down into them) for the Castletown Arra area and I'd say are the basis of our modern maps of Ireland.

This final map today is one that always raises an exciting question. Who are the "Danes" that are marked in the Castletown Arra area of Rev John Gleeson's map?
I have written before about possible Viking bases on Lough Derg. A recent paper made available by Eamonn Kelly of the National Muesuem shows the form of various Viking settlements around Ireland. It might be of interest to anyone looking for a Viking base on Lough Derg via aerial maps.

Equinox Sunset, Lisheentyrone Stone Pair & Rock Art

Equinox setting-sun at Lisheentyrone stone pair

In March 2014 I visited this stone pair to examine whether it may be potentially be aligned to the Equinox sun-set / sun-rise. Amazingly enough when there I discovered a panel of cup-marks that had previously not been noted before. This was North Tipperary's first confirmed find of rock-art and as such opens up the area as one where more art is likely to be found. To cap off what personally was a great delight it also appears that the standing stone pair are also aligned towards the Equinox sun-set.

Since then I have wondered about whether at Equinox sun-rise, that the standing stones may cast a significant shadow onto the rock-art panel itself. Astronomical alignments are beginning to be understand at rock-art panels around the world so it wouldn't be without precedent.
The weather has not been conductive to checking this year but hopefully over the next few Equinox's it may become apparent.

What indeed was a "Cloghinkelly"?

Present remains of Church at Kilmore

After watching the talk on Dermot F Gleeson by Danny Grace as part of the Gleeson Clan Gathering I felt his research on Tipperary would have a lot to offer.
Looking through the papers he wrote on JSTOR the first one that caught my eye was
"What was a "Cloghinkelly". Included in The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland in 1953, this short piece that he wrote intrigued me. One because I've never heard of a Cloghinkelly and two because it relates to a few early Christian sites that I have been looking at over the last few years.

Remains at Latteragh

He refers to some documents from the 1600s which relate to the holdings of church lands in the Diocese of Killaloe. Included within in these holdings are a Cloghinkelly. So to resurrect a question that to my knowledge hasn't been answered, just what was one of these?

Gleeson quotes a line "the vicarage of Lattrah, and ye Cloninkellies of Kilmore, Kilteely, Clonibrah and Kiltinanleth" he also mentions the "Cloghinkelly of Yohall arra" and "ffinah, (and) Killinasullah".
He goes on to propose that it is a phonetic spelling of the Irish Clochan Cailleach or "Women's House".
Is this a suggestion that women lived within or near the monasteries also?

(Kiltinanleth appears to be just north of Templemore where a church and enclosure was meant to have been located but there are no remains today).

There is the remains of a nunnery near Shanagolden known as Mainistir na Caileach Duff. So I think we can conclude the Caileach could also apply to a nun and therefore the translation could be "Nun's House". I wonder were these some kind of nunneries attached to these sites? Both Lattragh, Kilmore and Youghal Arra were all home to monasteries / monastic enclosures.

Perhaps it was a building for women coming to worship at the Churchs of these monasteries. Was segregation based on gender practiced at early monastic sites in Ireland?
I know at larger monasteries such as Clonmacnoise there were a number of concentric enclosures of which the general public were only allowed access to the outside ones. 

Lastly Cailleach is often translated as witch (See Sliabh na Cailleach in Co. Meath). Although the least likely, could a Cloghinkelly be a "Witches house"?

Window in current Church ruins at Youghalarra

Shrough Passage Tomb, Astronomically aligned to the Equinox?

The setting-sun within the passage on the Autumn Equinox 2014

Situated on Slievenamuck which makes up one half of the Glen of Aherlow is Tipperary's only confirmed passage tomb. However I do think there are at least two other passage tombs in Tipp, one on top of the Mahurslieve near Kilcommon and another on top of Slievenamon.

This passage tomb is described on Archaeology.ie as follows;

"On the summit of Shrough Hill, part of the Slievenamuck/Moanour mountains, with forestry encroaching to within 10m to N, E and W, forestry to W has been felled affording an extensive view of the Galty mountains and foothills below. A stone wall runs E-W along the S edge of the mound. The monument consists of a roughly circular cairn (diam. 30m; H 2m) with a small, roofless polyogonal chamber (int. dims. L 2.2m; Wth 1.2m), aligned roughly E-W, near the centre of the cairn (De Valera and Ó Nualláin 1982, 101; Ó Nualláin and Cody 1987, 76-8). The sidestones vary in height from 1.2m to 1.8m (ibid. 76). The cairn is overgrown with gorse, heather and low scrub."


Now most people are familiar with the Winter Solstice sunrise alignment at Newgrange in Co. Meath, on the shortest day of the year the rising sun shines into the long passage there. However there are likely to be a number of other intentionally aligned megalithic monuments around Ireland. This is something I have always had an interest in and I created a blog / website about this here. In it I have detailed almost 100 potential alignments around the country.

My trusted companion at Shrough passage tomb.

Here at Shrough the short passage is aligned on an east-west axis with the entrance to the west. I have always suspected that it might be aligned to the setting sun on the Equinox (the day when night and day are half and half) which occurs twice during a year, first in Spring on the 21st March and then in the Autumn on the 21st September.
I previously visited this tomb at the Autumn Equinox sun-set in 2013 but unfortunately the sun was obscured by cloud. Access for the Equinox is difficult as its a bit hairy getting back down out of there after sunset as you are left 2kms from the nearest road on top of a mountain with much forestry all around. I again visited in 2014 and for a few brief minutes the sun broke through a bank of cloud to illuminate the passage. To the west where the sun sets is Knockfierna or "The fairy hill of Donn Firinne" and to the east Slievenamon or "Mountain of women" is clearly in view so this is an area steeped in folklore.
Now I have to accept that as the passage is only 2.2m long and the exact size of the original entrance unknown, this means the alignment lacks accuracy. It is likely that the sun illuminates into the tomb from a good few weeks either side of the Equinox. One thing that would be interesting to see is the exact final setting place of the sun, the last time there I could not see this due to the cloud. If it both illuminated the chamber and set over the hill of Knockfierna on the Equinox then that would greatly reduce the chance of it being a coincidence.

The tomb looking towards the west with an arrow showing where Knockfeerina is located.

The hill of Slievenamuck also appears in folklore on duchas.ie

http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922302/4868451

"A long, long time ago there lived a fierce black pig on the Sliab na Muc Hills. This pig was the terror of the neighbourhood and nobody would dream of roaming on the hilltops for fear of meeting with this terrible beast. It happened that one day a great giant called Diarmuid chanced to come across the pig at a point or peak on those hills called Corrin (Cairn). The pig in its rage started rooting up the ground and continued doing so until it had made a huge deep hole. This hole is still to be seen and for years everybody that passed it by threw a stone into it, why I cannot say.
The giant then attacked the pig put could not kill it. The battle raged for hours and towards sunset they found themselves 3 or 4 miles further east at a place called Rathdarby. The giant here made a last attempt with his spear to kill the pig but he missed his thrust only to find the pig taking a sudden hold of him on the ground. It then seized the giant by the throat and killed him. He was buried on the spot where today three large stones mark the site of his grave. This grave is on Mr. T. Kennedys land Rathdarby, a few miles from here.
All the old people called the valley lying south of the Sliab na Muc Hills the "Valley of the Black Pig".

This story would have been particularly interesting if the pig had travelled west rather than east. Shrough is 3 or 4 miles from Rathdarby and the mention of sunset in folklore would have been a suggestive one.

The Cats Stone of Tipperary

I first spotted the name Catstone on one of the old 1840's maps for the Dromineer area. It of course reminded me of the famous Catstone at Uisneach in Co. Westmeath, thought to be the mythical centre of Ireland.

Cats Stone marked on the old 1840's maps (Copyright NMS)

It is in the townland of Shannonhall and marked as a redundant record in the SMR. Archaeology.ie describes it as follows

"Situated just off crest of rise in very undulating pastureland. Large conglomerate of sedimentary rock, obviously layered with quartz pebbles. This is a large, roughly rectangular erratic (3.4m x 2.5m; H 1.3m on N side; H 2.2m on S side) resting on ground surface. Not an archaeological monument, though it is marked on 1st (1840) ed. as 'Stone' with typical depiction of pillar stone."

I visited it one day a couple of years ago to see what it looked like and it does look similar to the one at Uisneach. As above there was nothing to suggest it is anything other than a natural erratic boulder.

Later I found reference to it in Martin Power's book "Dear Land, Native Place" in which he had this to say about it;

"On George Clarke's farm at Shannonhall, Dromineer, there stands a single large stone which is map-listed as a "Cat-stone". This stone which stands alone on high ground in a large field is visible from long distances, particularly from the high Owney and Arra area.
The stone is not part of an outcrop, but stands free, being narrowest at base. It is about 10 feet high with a circumference measure of 39ft at the centre height. It is conglomerate substance, containing particles of many types of stone. It is native to the west of Ireland, and was pushed by the glaciers to its present location in the great Ice Age. There are a number of cat-stones about Ireland, some much larger than the one in Shannonhall. They are of great antiquity. It is generally accepted that they once represented "markers" of areas where boundaries met. The boundary lines would have been marked by heavy wooden posts or trees. It is generally believed that cat-stones were used as meeting places or perhaps more correctly as "assembly places" at times of Inaugeration or even before battle. At the risk of error I would venture to say that the name of Cat-Stone derives from the stone in appearance resembling a crouching cat. Full marks to George Clarke and his predecessors for preserving this important monument, where others, less caring might have removed it."

So does this stone mark the boundary between Ormond and Owney & Arra? Although geographically it fits it seems unlikely as that would suggest it would have to be moved into position to fit this border.
Does it look like a cat? Well personally I never really saw the cat shape in the Cat Stone at Uisneach. However this is of similar shape to the one at Uisneach so perhaps so.

It seems more likely to me that it was utilised as a natural landmark for meetings etc. However it is not currently possible to see it from the nearby road. It should be possible to observe it from the lake and Martin suggests that it can be seen from "high Owney and Arra". This is not something I have seen myself.
Lastly are there any other instances of Cat-stones around Ireland other than here and at Uisneach? I haven't came across any other references.

Edit:

It seems likely that the name of stone here refers to the townland of Carrow just to the south of it.
Carrow comes from the Irish Ceathru which would be pronounced "Cat" ru and it is probable that is this was the "Cat" ru stone and later Cats stone. Thanks to Gillies Macbain who suggested the meaning on facebook.
https://www.logainm.ie/en/46616
It is on the border between two baronies - Lower Ormond & the half barony of Arra but I don't know if that would be enough for it to become of importance.

The First Inhabitants of Tipperary

Who was the first person to live or step foot in the County of Tipperary?

Cave on Knockadoon (Lough Gur)

I suppose first you have to look at where and when the first people arrived in Ireland?
For a long time the earliest human settlement dated in Ireland was to what we call the Mesolithic or between 8000 - 4000 BC. Traditionally the consensus suggested that a location at Mount Sandel in County Derry showed the earliest evidence of human settlement and dates to circa 8000BC.

Since then, the reexamination of a bear bone from the "Alice and Gwendoline" cave in the Burren has tentatively pushed the date back further in the Paleolithic period which basically is anything from 8000BC back to 2.6million years ago!
Dr Marion Dowd & Dr Ruth Canden and their team reexamined a cut mark on the bear bone and they suggest that it must have been made by a human. Tests on the bear bone date it to approx. 10,500BC and so human activity in Ireland has been pushed back a full 2,500 years older than previously thought. For more on this find see here.

Picture from original 1903 excavation

Mesolithic remains have been found not to far away from Tipperary. At Hermitage on the banks of the Shannon at Castleconnel a settlement and burials were found. Could Mesolithic people have followed the river to enter into Lough Derg and onwards into Tipperary? Also at Lough Boora in Offaly further evidence of Mesolithic activity was discovered.

A cave site at Killuragh near Cappamore yielded evidence of Mesolithic settlement again near a river, this time the Bilboa River which rises in Tipperary near Kilcommon.

The excavation report for the cave at Killuragh is very interesting, from archaeology.ie;

"Killuragh Cave was first excavated in 1993 (Excavations 1993, 51-2). A new excavation was carried out at the site in 1996.

Several related reasons necessitated further excavation.

Material from both the original explorations and excavation of the cave system had been left in the vicinity of the cave and had in the course of time weathered down. In August 1994 the landowner, Mr Benny O'Neil, recovered archaeological material from the surface of the spoilheap and, realising its significance, removed the soil to his farmyard, where he meticulously examined it over a period of time. He recovered a further number of artefacts, including flint and pottery. The area outside the cave was also examined by Mr O'Neil in conjunction with Mr R. 0 Floinn of the National Museum, at which point a flint blade and more pottery were recovered.

During September 1994 Mr O'Neil began to recover microliths from the soil and informed the National Museum. After a visit by the author and Ms M. Cahill (National Museum), Mr M. Kelleher was employed to sieve the remainder of the spoilheap. Further artefacts, including a microlith and a fragment of pottery, were recovered, as well as beads and other objects of uncertain age.

In late 1995 radiocarbon dates were obtained for three human bones which had been submitted from the 1993 excavation. These indicated that at least two of the human bones present in the cave dated from approx. 8000 bp, while a third individual dated from approx. 4700 bp. The first dates were obviously associated with the microliths, which in Ireland tend to date to 8000 bp or earlier, while the later date would be associated with the two hollow scrapers which Mr O'Neil had found.

With the realisation that the cave and possibly its exterior had contained significant concentrations of archaeological material from the Mesolithic and Neolithic periods, it was decided that some of the problems might be resolved through further excavation. This was subsequently undertaken with the financial help of the National Monuments and Historic Buildings Service and the National Museum of Ireland. The purpose of the 1996 excavation was to ascertain whether any material or any traces of settlement remaining outside the cave showed signs of working its way into the cave. It was also hoped to establish whether any in situ deposits had survived within the cave in areas which were accessible to the excavators.

Platform outside the cave
As it was quite common for extensive occupation to take place outside cave entrances, it was decided to investigate three areas in the general vicinity of the cave. Trench 1 (2m x 2m) was placed on a platform below and to the west of the entrances. Trench 2 (2m x 1m) was placed on a flat terrace above Entrance 1. Trench 3 (1m x 1m) was placed on top of the limestone knoll which contained the caves.

While Trenches 1 and 3 produced little of significance, Trench 2 produced occasional flakes of flint, although there was little evidence of extensive prehistoric settlement in the general area. It was noted, by the presence of nineteenth-century glass and ceramics at a significant depth, that deposits in this area had been subjected to considerable disturbance. Since the excavation was completed, during general clearing of rubbish on the terrace, Mr O'Neil has found a chert scraper in the topsoil.

Entrance 1
It was apparent that much of the material from the earlier investigations was in a very weathered condition. As this suggested that material may have been washed into the cave, a residue of deposits at the base of the entrance passage was investigated. This revealed a fissure, approx. 4m long and 0.2m wide, containing up to 0.4m of deposits. Embedded in these deposits were several human teeth, a microlith and a flint blade. Cinder-like material was found in the upper deposits. There are indications that a large slab of rock partially, and probably deliberately, blocked the junction of the fissure and the cave. Work in the outer area of the entrance has so far produced no traces of in situ deposits which appeared to be clearly prehistoric. While modern ceramics were found close to the surface, nothing of recent significance was found at any depth. In the outer entrance to the fissure a concentration of dog bones was found beneath a layer of stones.

Entrance 2
Work within the mouth of the cave entrance consisted of the removal of deposits which had accumulated in the very recent past. Further investigations with a small trench suggested that most of the silt deposits in the outer area of the cave are sterile. These had been partially eroded away as a gully cutthrough a basal silt.

A small test-trench placed immediately outside Entrance 2 produced a flint flake from its upper levels, while a sherd of prehistoric pottery was found in what was a localised area of material derived from the earlier investigations. In this area concentrations of stone and soil filled the outer entrance. One fragment of iron was found within the stony deposit, as was a fragment of red deer antler. One human bone was found embedded in the uppermost portion of the same stony deposit. Where the stones were completely removed a compact orange basal clay was exposed.

The cave system
Investigation of the cave system itself identified two areas where some deposits had survived.

Immediately opposite the point where the fissure entered the cave a small pit was found to have cutthrough a gully, which in turn had disturbed an earlier pit. These features were cutinto the underlying compact orange clay which forms the floor of the cave in this area. Although the fill of the later pit contained a microlith, the occurrence of a horse bone in the earliest pit suggested that the entire sequence was created after 4000 BP. This complex also contained quantities of animal and bird bone in variable condition, including burnt material and fresh bone. The earlier pit contained a portion of a human jaw in a relatively fresh condition, while the gully contained fresh bones and two heavily stained lower limb bones of giant deer.

In a second area, in line with Entrance 2, a large concentration of bones was recovered from loose soil in an alcove created in a niche in the cave wall. This material, which included a portion of a jaw of a large dog, hare and young pig bones, was in a relatively fresh condition. A giant deer phalanx was found adjacent to the underlying clays and may have derived from them. It was clear, however, that most of the bones had occurred in the uppermost layers of silt in the alcove. Excavation in this area did not expose the compact orange clay previously encountered on the floor of the main cave. Instead it would appear that in this area the clay had been eroded away, with several layers of sand and silt subsequently accumulating against the surviving clay floor in the main area of the cave. As noted earlier, the brown earth containing the bones in the alcove postdate these accumulated layers.

Since the completion of the excavation several samples have been submitted for radiocarbon dating in Oxford. These include: horse bone from pit, approx. 3000 bp;human bone from pit, approx. 3800 bp; human jaw from 1993 excavation, approx. 5450 bp; pig bone from alcove, approx. 3300 bp; dog mandible from alcove, approx. 3900 bp; human tooth from entrance fissure, approx. 5700 bp; dog bone from entrance to fissure, approx. 4900 bp.

In the context of these and other dates, and given the very limited extent of in situ material, one can only speculate on the sequence of events at Killuragh Cave. As the human bones were frequently found out of context and as there was no association between individuals, it is virtually impossible to establish how many individuals belonged to each period at Killuragh. The discovery of a few flint flakes stratified above modern pottery and the recent find of a chert scraper from a similar context suggest that some, if not most, of the area adjacent to the cave has been disturbed since prehistory.

Several possible phases can now be identified, many of which may have been initially associated with activities on the knoll at Killuragh.(1) Ritual activity in the early Mesolithic, associated with two or more human bodies. This phase may have been associated with one or more composite implements containing microliths.(2) Ritual activity associated with the final stages of the Mesolithic, represented by the radiocarbon dates, probably from different individuals.(3) Neolithic activity associated with at least one individual, and a possible placement of the dog at the entrance to the cave. Two hollow scrapers found by Mr O'Neil may have been associated with this phase.(4) Bronze Age activity in which the only deliberately placed offering (?) seems to have been a human jaw in the pit at the rear of the cave.(5) There may have been a later phase of activity which could have been associated with some form of metalworking.

It seems probable that no real settlement activity was associated with Phases 1 and 2 and it is possible that much of this material was washed in from outside. The Neolithic phase may be a product of activity within the cave itself, while it is probable that much of the Bronze Age phase is associated with the cave. Unfortunately, without a very costly programme of radiocarbon dating many of the issues cannot be resolved, and even with such a programme there is no guarantee of success.
Peter Woodman, Dept. of Archaeology, University College, Cork."

This leads us on to other discoveries in caves and a find in a cave at Annagh just over the Tipperary border from Newport. The finds here seem to date to the Neolithic but show the potential of caves for the finding of human remains.

Tountinna from the road below.

An interesting legend relating to early human habitation in Ireland is linked to Tipperary and the hill of Tountinna near Portroe in North Tipperay. Tountinna translates as "Hill of the wave" or "Wave of Fire" and in the Dinnshenchas (lore of places) it is recorded as where Fintan "the wise" was interred.
Fintan mac Bóchra in the invasion myths is meant to have accompanied Noah's granddaughter Cessair to Ireland before the Biblical flood. He was the only person in Ireland who survived the flood by turning into a salmon and hiding in a cave on Tountinna known as Fintan's Grave. He lived for 5,500 years and became an advisor to many of the later kings of Ireland such as the Fir Bolg king Eochaid mac Eirc. No cave has ever been found on Tountinna to my knowledge and I understand the local geology does not aid the formation of a cave. It is possible that rather than a cave, the likely megalithic structure known as the Graves of the Leinstermen is Fintan's Grave.

Lake on Tountinna

Notwithstanding the fact that there might be no cave on Tountinna, the point that I want to make is regarding caves in Tipperary and the potential for early human finds within them.
With the amount of highland in the county which is not regularly walked, there is likely to be a number of unexplored caves in the county. To my knowledge I don't think there is even a list of caves in the county? Even ones that are know could house previously unrecognised lithics or other signs of inhabitation.
So a list of locations of caves in the county would be a good start to finding the oldest habitation site in Tipperary.

St Odhran's Well

Today is the pattern day of St. Odhran of Latteragh. His pattern takes place today at St. Odhran's well near Latteragh in Co. Tipperary. Incorrectly I previously worte that St. Odhran was one of "The Twelve Apostles of Ireland" who went with St. Columcille to found the monastery on Iona off the coast of Scotland. I wrote about this here.

I've since found some more interesting folklore about the well in the Schools Manuscipts including St Medran using his breath to light a candle, St Odhran's well springing up where a boy disappeared, the "cures" that the stones at the well can perform and of course a magic trout within the well itself.
From duchas.ie
"About the beginning of the sixth century two holy men Saint Odhran and Saint Medran lived at Latteragh in the parish of Templederry. Believing that it would be pleasing to God to spread his Gospel to places where it was not known, they set out to visit Saint Kieran at Kilkenny probably to get his advice as to where and how they should start their missionary labours. Upon reaching Kilkenny Saint Medran expressed a desire to remain with Saint Kieran. Odhran reminded him of the object of their visit Saint Kieran was appealed to to decide the matter, and he said let God decide. If Medrans breath could light a taper it was to be a sign he was to remain with Saint Kieran and that Odhran was to return to Latteragh. Upon Medran breathing on the taper it was lighted so Medran remained and Odhran returned to Latteragh where for nearly half a century he spread the light of faith and learning, nearly three thousand pupils attended the school conducted by the monks.
This monastery was in existence until confiscated by the Normans.
Local tradition has many tales concerning Saint Odhran and his monastery. One is that sometime after his return to Latteragh from Kilkenny at the request of Saint Kieran he and his monks had occasion to again visit Saint Kieran probably for some ecclesiastical conference. Who was in charge of the monastery in their absence is not stated but a young boy was left to protect their corn from the birds. Upon the return of Saint Odhran and his monks they found that he had gathered all the birds into a house. The monks were annoyed at this and started questioning him instead of answering he fled from there and passing between two hills near the monastery he suddenly faded away and disappeared. On the spot where he was last seen a well sprung up which became known as Saint Odhran's holy well. This well is in existence yet and people go to pray there on the 15th August every year. It is about a foot and a half in depth and four feet in diameter, circular in shape and line with stones. Tradition has it that is the home of a magic trout that is sometimes seen by a privileged few. Once a man from the neighbourhood upon seeing the trout prodded and ill treated him. Within a week he died from mysterious disease. Six or stones of medium sizes are at the very brink around this well they are supposed to be there from the days of Saint Odhran and three possess a cure. One cures a toothache, another a pain in the head and another a pain in the stomach. Local people know the appropriate stone to use. The cure is affected as follows:- so many rounds of the well and certain prayers are to be said after which the appropriate stone is applied to the part to be cured and then returend to its place.
The above has been collected by Willie Shanahan of Coolderry who got it from his mother whose maiden name was Gleeson and whose people have been interred inside Latteragh abbey for the last five or six hundred years been the oldest family in the district."
http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922139/4856028

Edit 

It looks as though I was incorrect, there are in fact a number of different St. Odhran according to 

The Odhran of Latteragh, Odhran of Iona & Odhran of Waterford.

A Dictionary of Irish Saints

Pg 519 

Odhrán Maighistir, 'master', of Latteragh (Leitreacha Odhráin), barony of Upper Ormond, Co. Tipperary. Easily the best known of he saints of this name, Odhrán (anglicized Oran and Otteran)) son of Mac Raith was attached to the Ui Dhaighre of Múscraighe Tíre, whose lands straddled the two baronies of Ormond. Seanán of Scattery also belonged to the Múscraighe, and this may explain why a member of his household named Odhrán is said to have been with his brother Meadhrán, Odhrán Maighister is supposed to have visited Ciarán at Seirkieran with a view to making a pilgrimage, only to be told that, though his brother should remain, he was fated to return to his place of resurrection at Latteragh. In the same passage, mention is made both of an otherwise unattested Life of the saint and of his part in the translation of the remains of Colum of Terryglass to Inishcaltra, elsewhere commemorated in quatrains attributed to Bréanainn.

Odhrán is said to have acted with Mac Cuilinn of Lusk as an emissary to Ciarán of Clonmacnoise, to let the latter know that the saints of Ireland were under his authority. He is also reputed to have placed a curse on Cormac son of Coichean of the Dál gCais at a place called Rinn Arda Odhráin on Lough Derg because of the dynast's refusal to grant his people, the Múscraighe's three seanóirí, the saint is likely to be intended in the dedication of a holy well to Oran at Ahaveheen in the Limerick parish of Cloncrew, just outside the later cantred of Muscridonegan. Odhrán was remembered on two days, 2 and 26/27 October, the latter of which - observed at Latteragh - was shared with namesakes on Iona and Killotteran in Waterford. 

Odhrán of Iona, Scotland. Described in some late sources as abbot of Iona, Odhrán son of Ainghin is said to have belonged to the same branch of the Ceinéal Conaill as his later colleague Doirbhéan. In reality he was a priest on Iona, and probably because the local cemetery (Reilig Odhráin) was named after him, he became the subject of a story suggesting that, with a view to consecrating the island, he had volunteered to become the first person interred on it. His feastday of 27 October also belonged to his namesakes at Latteragh (Tipperary) and Killotteran (Waterford) and, through confusion with the saint named Oireannán commemorated on the same day, he later became attached to the church of Teach Oireannáin, sometimes taken to be the Westmeath chuch of Tyfarnham. A cemetery dedicated to Odhrán 

St. Patrick's Rock, Cloneybrien, Portroe

Back in 2014 when I first came across the Rock Art at Lisheentyrone I thought it would be easy to find more. I surveyed the old 1840s OS maps online around the Portroe area and came across a feature called out as St. Patrick's Rock which I had never heard of up to that point.

When I clicked into the description of it on Archaeology.ie it was described as "natural depressions on surface of boulder known locally as the footprint of a greyhound".

I immediately thought this has to be unrecognised rock-art and visited as soon as I could. I was particularly optimistic as this rock is on the slope of a prehistoric hill-fort and there were two other unusual prehistoric features in the area (Graves of the Leinstermen & The Capstone of the King of Leinster).

Unfortunately as you can see from the photos the depression does indeed seem to be natural. There is also some recent graffiti on the rock.

Since then I found this bit of folklore on the rock.

From the Irish Tourism Association's Survey of Portroe (available to download here).

"Stone Laghtea Hill
It is said they were made by St. Patrick's mule & hound on the occasion on which he rested at the well in Cloneybrien.
On Commonage"

Its a stone I viewed in very strong light at the time and one I wouldn't mind another look at some time even just to see the modern graffiti on it.

Walk & Talk about Ancient rock carvings recently found in Portroe, Co. Tipperary

When: 26th August 2016 - 18.30 - 19.30
Where: Meet at Portroe National School, Portroe, Nenagh, Co. Tipperary

Details

"Ancient rock carvings recently found in Portroe, Co. Tipperary.- First of its kind discovered in Tipperary and place of “gatherings” for over 4,000 years."
This walk and talk departs from outside Portroe National School where we will walk through fields for approximately 800m to visit the megalithic complex of Lisheentyrone. Ground is typical agricultural land with uneven and muddy surfaces and so appropriate foot-wear is required. All attending the walk will be doing so at their own risk.
This complex includes a pair of standing stones, a bowl barrow and since 2014 a large horizontal stone panel of cup-marks. This is the first of its kind found in the mid-west region and all of Co. Tipperary. This rock-art, as it is known, dates to at least the bronze age or 4,000 years ago. It can be argued that it is of a similar tradition to the rock carvings on passage tombs such as Newgrange in Co. Meath. I will try and give a general outline of rock-art in Ireland, the interaction of this panel with its surroundings and also other instances that I was uncovered in North Tipperary. Lastly and most excitingly for me, where you find one example of rock-art there are often more to be found, so if everyone who attends keeps their eyes open when out and about in the locality, I am sure there is more of it out there to be found in the area. It is being held in conjunction with Ormond Historical Society & Portroe Gathering. Also our thanks to the landowners for the access to their lands.

Kilmore, Silvermines

When I read the folklore associated with Kilmore in the Schools Manuscripts I knew I would have to pay it a visit sometime.

How many opportunities do you get to visit a place where a man was brought back to life?

Folklore says it was St. Odhran who founded the monastery at Kilmore. It also says that it was the location of raising a man from the dead Lazarus style by St. Senan.
St. Senan is associated more with West Clare where he was born but he is noted as one of the "Twelve Apostles of Ireland" as was St. Odhran.
You would expect binging someone back from the dead would be a miracle that couldn't be topped. However St. Senan also rid Scattery Island in the Shannon Estuary of "The Cathach", a sea serpent like creature so it is debatable which is more impressive!
When he was a boy he also performed a miracle similar to Moses's parting of the red sea where a path opened across an estuary to allow him to bring back his cows.

Here is the folklore from the Schools Manuscripts

http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922147/4856392/5017172

"There was a miracle performed in Kilmore, it happened that a certain widows only son died and when he was being brought to the graveyard, the widow saw the two priests she ran to them and went on her knees and begged them to bring her son to life. St Senan took the body into a room in the monastery and prayed over it and behold the man came to life."

http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922147/4856395/5017239

"Saint Odraín of Latteragh is the patron Saint of this parish.
He built a famous monastery in Latteragh about the year 500 A.D. on a level space on side of a hill.
Some time later he built another in Kilmore which means the big church, it was made of timber but later on it was made of stone, it is now in ruins.
There was a great miracle performed there by St. Sennon, he brought the son of a woman of that district to life."

For an area where a monastery was supposed to have been located there are very few crop-marks around it. It is the focus of four roads in the area so perhaps that is of some significance. The present ruined church is meant to have been built in the 18th Century. An information board at the graveyard says that the original church here was wooden and was replaced by a stone structure in 1000AD. It says the present structure operated as a Protestant church until 1820.