I’m just back from an excellent long weekend at the inaugural Skellig Coast Archaeology Festival. The weather was atrocious and many events were outside but we were a hardy lot and sallied forth anyway – and there were wells!
St Crohane’s Well, Tobar Chrócháin
One of the highlights of the programme for me was a walk to the prehistoric copper mine high up on Coad mountain near Caherdaniel. The ancient mine is also known as Carraig Chrócháin or St Crohane’s hermitage for it is said the saint spent time up here, no doubt in deep contemplation. On the historic maps, a holy well, Tobercrone, is also marked, as yet unrecorded in the Archaeological Survey for Kerry but I had heard that it might still exist. I had visited the site in sunnier times and although I discovered the hermitage had been unable to find any trace of the well.
Later, I was alerted by Aoibheann of Rock Art Kerry (and organiser of the festival) that it still existed and I was looking forward to seeing it.
A very hardy dozen of us gathered by the cemetery in Coad in appalling conditions – high winds and heavy rain – but we persuaded Aoibheann that we were game for the hike.
First we visited Cáit na Pluaise’s rock shelter – a jumble of mighty stones in the middle of extremely soggy bog where Cáit, her children and her sister had made a home sometime in the 1860s. It was sobering imagining how they coped, Cáit making a meagre living as a herbalist.
We determined to carry on towards the coppermine, conditions were tough underfoot and it was hard going but we eventually clambered up the mountain in foggy and dark conditions. I was delighted to find the well though – roughly marked by three wonky posts, on the other side of the gushing stream from the hermitage/ copper mine.
The well itself was circular with a stone-lined basin, much overgrown with heather and grasses, marked by a partly concealed stone. Peeping out from the bog was a small flat stone deeply scored with a cross which spoke of the countless pilgrims who had made the arduous turas up here.
This is one of three wells dedicated to St Crohane, all once visited around his feast day, 30th July, part of a three day pattern starting at St Crohane’s well, also known as Tobar na Bhile, in Coad and ending at Tobar na Bearan, Well of the Gap, higher up the mountain in Windy Gap. I reckon the whole turas was around 11.5km.
Wet and tired, we carefully retraced our steps, ending up on the Kerry Way and making a slow descent down the mountain – a very adventurous but satisfactory visit!
Saturday saw a trip to a petrified forest at Bunaneer where we examined some of the 350 tree stumps, believed to be about 4000 years old. This trunk is named Goliath!
This was followed by a very bracing clamber up to Eightercua stone row – magnificent but the gale force winds were incredible!
Later I gave a talk on Holy Wells of the Iveragh and was followed by my friend Finola Finlay, who recounted her exploits 50 years ago, hurtling around the small roads on her Honda 50, recording rock art on the peninsula. A huge day ended with some excellent traditional music with Peter and Rosaleen Mullarkey.
St Finán’s Well, Tobar Fhionáin
On Sunday there were more adventures and more holy wells in store. The weather had not improved and the winds were mighty, the sea at St Finán’s Bay churning and magnificent. Apparently St Finán himself had landed on the strand, been knocked over by a wave and got his sandals wet. He was not pleased and cursed the bay saying there would forever be a large broken wave here – they seemed pretty continuous today!
Today’s excursion was led by poet Paddy Bushe. We first visited St Finán’s Well overlooking the bay, the water copious and cold. The wellhouse had been constructed in the 1980s ( I think) by the landowner who was present. He told us that three rounds were traditional here. And look, the sun came out!
St Buonia’s Well, Tobar Buaine
We then car pooled and headed up towards Knockaskereighta Mountain to visit the remarkable early Christian settlement at Cill Buaine. I had visited this site twice before – a mission to get to each time but I had been blown away by all the marvels up here and literally had to sit down to take it all in. Recently conservation work has been undertaken by the National Monument Service and some of the encroaching vegetation has been cleared, and limited reconstruction near the terracing has been carried out.
Paddy outlined what was before us – an oratory, hut sites, a gable shrine, a cross slab and a stone cross.
He believes the oratory looked out onto Skellig Michael and wondered whether the whole site might have been a sort of home farm for the original monastic settlement on the rock. Looking in the other direction, glimpses between the folds of the mountain led to Kildreeligh where there was another remote monastic settlement perched on a mountainside.
Paddy said the area around the well had also been cleared and we set out to find it. It was nestling in a clump of fuchsia bushes and was incredibly boggy but how good to see the cairn of stones over the well including my very favourite carving – this beautiful face, maybe of the saint herself.
The drawing, copied from the stone in 1902 by MJ Delap, shows how the carvings are eroding with far fewer details visible. Another deeply scored stone lay next to it.
Nine rounds were paid here including visiting the gable shrine (one of only seven in Ireland) where offerings were slipped into the hole at the base of the structure. The complex cross slab was also part of the round and has a deep cross scored into it.
It was interesting to see two piles of little white quartz stones – had these been used as aide memoires during the rounds, or were they simple but significant offerings?
What a wonderful place. We slipped and skidded back down the mountain, marvelling at such a large yet enigmatic site. St Buonia remains elusive – maybe a sister of St Patrick, maybe a very local saint, maybe St Brendan or maybe someone else altogether!
A most enjoyable weekend – in spite of the weather! The dates for the next festival have already been announced and are 18-20th October 2024. Highly recommended.
What a memorable weekend and well done you for braving the weather and the mountains.
I think I have to drag you up to Cill Buaine next time!