The Tipperary Antiquarian

Devil's Bit Mountain The last Sunday in July is known as Reek Sunday and is associated with the pilgrimage up Croagh Patrick. Other names include Garland Sunday, Garlic Sunday and Billberry Sunday. This Christian pilgrimage is often thought to have replaced the pre-Christian festival of Lughnasa. Interestingly enough in "The Festival of Lughnasa" by Máire MacNeill a number of places in Tipperary are associated with similar pilgrimages or walks on the last Sunday in July / Lughnasa. (The date of which varies) Mothers Mountain near Kilcommon / Rearcross (North Tipp) Keeper Hill near Kiloscully (North Tipp) Knockshegowna near Ballingarry (North Tipp) Devil's Bit near Gortagarry (North Tipp) The exact date for Lughnasa festivals varies a bit. For example - Rock Sunday at the Rock of Barnane or Devil's Bit is said to be the closest Sunday to the St. James's Day which is the 25th of July. (See the festival of Lughnasa - pg 218) That would make it toda...

This is a draft version of the article Rock Art in North Tipperary By Derek Ryan Bawn When you review a map of the distribution of prehistoric rock-art in Ireland there has always been a large area, according to the Schedule of Monuments Record (SMR), where none occurs in the counties of Tipperary, Limerick, the northern sections of Cork & Kerry, most of Clare and most of Offaly & Laois (Fig.1).  Fig. 1 Geographical distribution of Rock-art in Ireland (Lisheentyrone is highlighted in red) (courtesy of the National Monuments Service, Department of the Environment, Heritage and the Gaeltacht). Broadly speaking there are large concentrations in the south& west of Cork & Kerry, another concentration around Kilkenny, Carlow and Wicklow, there is some of the most famous rock-art in Meath (Bru Na Boinne& Loughcrew) and another concentration in Donegal / Derry. There are also some panels in Mayo, Sligo, Cavan, Louth and Westmeath. Recently a n...

From Notices of Chinese Seals Found in Ireland by Edmund Getty (1850) Just how did this 17th / 18th century Chinese seal end up being ploughed up in a field in Borrisokane in 1832/33? It is not just a single stray find as over 60 stamps inscribed with Chinese characters have been found in Ireland (between 1780 & 1868) with 3 reported to have been found in Tipperary. For a better idea of what one of these seals look like click here . Basically they are like ink stamps about 28mm square with an animal such as a monkey or a lion carved as the handle. They are completely made from porcelain. Taken from "The story of the Chinese seals found in Ireland" by Imre Galambos I only recently came across this historical mystery while reading skeptical blogger Jason Colavito here . I had never heard of these artifacts before but seemingly paranormal researcher Charles Fort had discussed them in his book "The Book of the Damned" in 1919....

St Conlan's Well & Rag Tree I've been visiting this well since I was a boy. Reading through the Schools Manuscripts this seems to have been one of a trio of very important wells around the Nenagh area. St. John's Well at Brookwatson, St. Odhrans well in Latteragh and St. Conlan's Well here at Youghalvillage. The traditional pattern day of the well is the 24th of July and in recent years the pattern has enjoyed a revival. This year the pattern is at 7.30pm on Sunday 24th of July. It is described in archaeology.ie as follows "Situated on a hillocky area on a SE-facing slope. This holy well is a natural spring which flows into an open pool. Though not marked on the 6-inch OS map a lane leads from the main track right up to the well. Maintained and still visited, the well is enclosed by a hexagonal drystone wall (diam. C. 1.3m; H c.1m) and is covered by a flat slab of slate which has been partially cut to allow easy access to the water. Opening to SE, ...

The Cross on top of Knocksheegowna Knocksheegowna Hill Knocksheegowna near Ballingarry is a Sídh in North Tipperary. In Irish Mythology a Sídh is a fairy mound or hill in which the fairies are thought to reside. As part of the mythological invasion cycles, when the Milesians invaded Ireland from Iberia, the early Gods or residents of Ireland, the Tuatha De Danann, agreed to retreat into the hills, mounds and under lakes. Knocksheegowna is one of these, translating as the Fairy Hill of the Una, a fairy Goddess. It is now home to Bike Park Ireland  and it is surprising that no ancient remains have been found up here because it certainly looks like it should. Prof Ronald Hicks (who has carried out extensive research on the Sídhs or Fairy Mounds of Ireland) has this to say on it "Another hill. This one is Síd Ebhna (Knockshigowna) near Ballingarry, County Tipperary, ruled over by Queen Eabhna (or Una), the bans...

This is a very beautiful and impressive bullaun stone in the Glen of Aherlow in the townland of Gortavoher. Like most bullaun stones it is near a religious site with an ecclesiastical enclosure about 150m to the north.   From archaeology.ie "On the E bank of a small stream on the S side of the main road through the Glen of Aherlow, in pasture. A roughly circular boulder (dims. 1m x 1.1m; H 0.33m) of red sandstone with quartz inclusions, with three water-filled circular depressions (dims. 0.27m x 0.34m; D 0.19m; 0.26m x 0.26m; D 0.18m; 0.24m x 0.31m; D 0.2m) and three other depressions at the edge of the boulder (0.24m x 0.26m; D 0.16m; 0.26m x 0.27m; D 0.22m; 0.22m x 0.28m; D 0.05m), the latter edges are worn where they meet the edge of the boulder, particularly the two deepest hollows. According to local tradition the bullaun has wart curing properties. The bullaun currently rests on a stone plinth with a low back wall constructed of small rounde...

I first heard of the stone in the Schools Manuscripts for the area. From duchas.ie http://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/5162110/5155109/5168413 "St. John's well is situated about one mile from Nenagh and on Brookwatson lands. It is called after St. John, and the print of his foot is still to be seen on a stone there. The people of the town still go to visit it on his feast day - 22nd June. St. John's Terrace is called after him." Thanks to John Flannery of Ormond Historical Society​ for the information that it is still there. It located outside the well's enclosure in a field adjacent to the river. It is an earthfast stone with what is probably a natural depression (in which a size 12 foot can fit). There is also carved graffiti on the stone. A number of incised lines, a cross and some writing which I couldn't make out (Two of the letters look to be O & N). I hopefully will get back there to take some night photos and they might be a bit clearer. ...

St Odhran's Well So what links the far flung island of Iona with the landlocked hills of Latteragh? Edit  Actually nothing that I'm aware of, it looks as though what I previously wrote was incorrect, there are in fact a number of different St. Odhran according to The Dictionary of Irish Saints namely - Odhran of Latteragh, Odhran of Iona & probably Odhran of Waterford.   St Odhran of Latteragh today is the patron saint of the Silvermines parish and the ruins of his monastery are still intact today at Latteragh (although what remains today are later ruins built on the earlier church). One of the more interesting features from Latteragh are four early Christian graveslabs found there while digging a grave in 1977. They are an unusual form of cross-carved slab that is mainly found in the midlands with some outliers in Co. Mayo, Co. Donegal & Co. Wexford. They have been dated between the 6th century and 7th century (so after...

Following on from yesterdays post about the recent Mass at St Johns Well, I decided to make a quick trip there myself. I had stopped for a quick look around before but this time I took a more detailed look. It is described in archaeology.ie as follows "Situated in a slight hollow on the S bank of a river. A stone-faced square-shaped well (dims. 1m x 1m x 0.75m D) with a stream flowing out of the N face into the nearby river. The well is contained within a large concrete wall. It is dedicated to St John whose feast day is the 24th of June and there is a statue of St John over the well. According to Sheehan (1949, 38-9) the well was visited in the nineteenth century on this feast day for its curative powers. No votive offerings visible." It is a beautifully maintained well with some interesting features. In the surround of the well are two semi circular stone features, the design on them suggest to me that they were probably worked /carved and so are probably...

Recently discovered Cursus on Slievenamon highlighted in Red ( © Bing Maps) ( © Bing Maps) Cursús (the plural of Cursus) have been speculated upon for centuries. The name comes from latin meaning "course" and in the 1700's British antiquarians such as William Stukeley thought they were Roman race tracks and hence the name in latin - Cursus. In Ireland a cursus on the Hill of Tara was named "The Banqueting Hall" by antiquarians as they tried to match monuments on the hill with ones mentioned in the Annals. Essentially cursús are large parallel lengths of banks with external ditches. Cursús at lower elevations in Ireland seem to be associated with "Royal" sites such as at Tara in Co. Meath, the Mucklaghs at Rathcroghan in Co. Roscommon, the Knockauns at Teltown (again in Meath) or nearest to Tipperary, Knockainey in Co. Limerick. Cursus at Knockainey, Co. Limerick ( © Bing Maps) ( © Bing Maps) The high elevation cursús seem to...