Bill Daly - The Axe

The Axe

BY BILL DALY

AS THE OUGHTERARD SUPPORTERS BUS HEADED TO CASTLEBAR FOR THE INTERMEDIATE FOOTBALL FINAL ON SATURDAY 16TH NOVEMBER 2019, MARY KYNE, OF THE OUGHTERARD CULTURE & HERITAGE GROUP IN COUNTY GALWAY AND LOCAL RESIDENT MARTIN LEE HAD A BRIEF CHAT.

In the course of this conversation Martin happened to mention that he had come across what looked like a few old objects over the years. Mary then said that the replica archaeological material would be on display in The Courthouse on the following Wednesday, in preparation for a film shoot by the Museum Of Country Life in Castlebar. Martin agreed to come along.

True to his word, Martin arrived in the door on the Wednesday morning, carrying a bag. The first object he showed us was a large molten limestone rock with an impregnated shell fossil. I had a couple of similar ones on display already and told Martin that this fossil was approximately 350 million years old. I also explained that when that particular fossil was formed, Oughterard and indeed all of Ireland, was submerged under a warm tropical and coral sea close to where Australia is now situated. Martin then said he had something else to show us, and as he reached into the bag again, the day would take an unexpected but very exciting turn!

In the earlier part of this year I had been researching the Neolithic period (4000 – 2500 BC). This was the phase that heralded the beginnings of settled agriculture and the building of the megalithic monuments. I was convinced , during my research, that the origins of the Neolithic in Oughterard was roughly in a line from the Peaks of Rusheeney (the Cloosh hills), along the fertile uplands of Maghera and onwards towards Lough Corrib in the area around Gortrevagh and Aughnanure Castle. As the research progressed, I was able to find solid evidence for a Neolithic presence around Aughnanure, and have already unearthed some potential monuments in Maghera/Raha that I also believe to be of Neolithic origin also. However, I was a bit light on evidence around the Peaks of Rusheeney/Cloosh, even though I knew it had to be there. I wondered would this evidence ever come to light to substantiate my original theory. I wasn’t too hopeful, possibly not in my lifetime anyway!

Back to Martin’s story, and as he reached into his bag for the second artefact, and slowly drew it forward,

the hairs literally stood upright on the back of my neck. I just couldn’t believe what I was seeing. In his hand, Martin was now holding a most beautiful polished stone axe from the Neolithic period, and I finally had the evidence I was looking for! Martin told me he has found it when he was building his house, many years ago, and had kept it all this time. This unexpected find is of major significance and importance to the Oughterard Heritage Group, and finally gives us hard evidence for a Neolithic presence in and around the Cloosh Hills.

The axe itself (see accompanying image) measures 11cm x 5cm, potentially 4000 to 5000 years old , and the polish and smoothness of its surface is as good as the day it was made all those millennia ago. It has a brownish colour after being soaked and buried in the brackish bog water for many thousands of years. The material used in the axe manufacture is a very sharp stone called flint or perhaps the even sharper porcellanite. However, flint/porcellanite is only found in the North-East of the country, in and around Antrim, and this demonstrates that there was extensive trading going on across the island of Ireland all those years ago. We are deeply indebted to Martin for preserving this beautiful artefact for so many years, and for also recognising its inherent archaeological value to our local landscape. ☘ ‘Stone Age. Bronze Age. Iron Age. We define entire epics of humanity by the technology they use’ – Reed Hastings.

BILL DALY

Originally from Tallow in West Waterford, Bill spent 30 years in Cork as a Senior Manager in the Electronics Manufacturing industry with such companies as Apple, EMC and Logitech. He has now been working on his own as a Consultant/ Contractor for the past 20 years in Lean Manufacturing and Materials principles. Bill has been resident in Oughterard since 2009, and for the past few years, working as a Local Archaeologist, has been undertaking a project with the Oughterard Heritage Group to research the prehistoric roots of the village. THE IRISH SCENE | 51

BeannachtaínaFéile PádraigarGhaeilis cairdeGaelsaniarthair Ástráil. Guím gach rath agus séan ar gach éinne atá ag ceiliúradh na Féile i mbliana.

No matter where we have been since 2020, the impact of COVID has been felt. And continues to be felt. In Australia, one of the most severe impacts has been to hinder our travel possibilities. But I hope we will soon be able to find our way to meet loved ones, to revisit favourite places or to explore new ones. As the various lockdowns have drawn our focus to things that are close to us – in our town, in our city, or in our State, there has been a welcome uptick in local pride. I see this local pride in the way in which Irish people have been looking out for each other and in the renewed interest in the many Irish organisations across Australia. However, this engagement with the local does not fully address the sense of yearning for home – the sense of cumha that sits with many Irish people here. Or, as St Patrick’s fellow Welsh-people have it – a feeling of hiraeth. There does not seem to be an exact English translation of this term, but to Welsh people, it conveys a feeling of deep longing for something, especially their home. Hiraeth recalls St Patrick’s initial days in Ireland. He spent about 6

Message from Irish Ambassador

H.E. Tim Mawe

years tending to pigs on a hillside in Antrim. Great must have been his yearning for home and heartland. For him, in 5th century Ireland, his exile and lockdown eventually ended, and he was able to reunite with the place of his birth before ultimately making Ireland his home. As we work our way through the COVID constraints, I nevertheless see three straws in the wind that point towards a better future for Ireland. Or indeed, three leaves on a new shamrock:. • The first leaf is the fact that last April the population of Ireland broke through the 5 million mark – the highest it has been since 1851. We are still not back to pre-famine levels but we are moving in the right direction.

• The second leaf is that in recent weeks, the ratings agency Fitches have upgraded their assessment of Ireland. This offers some reassurance that, despite the impact of COVID on the economy, the fundamentals are rebounding positively. Recent data on employment, exports and tax revenue endorse this assessment. • The third element of this socio-economic trinity is the fact that the 100 years of the independent Irish State is now split more or less 50/50 before and after membership of the European Union. That membership has been transformative of Irish society over the past five decades and offers a strong platform for our continued development. Future success is not of course guaranteed but as we draw on our collective resources and our sense of community, I think we can give ourselves the best possible opportunity of carving out a prosperous and sustainable future for Ireland and Irish people in a globalised economy and society. A future that is entirely modern in outlook but that retains all the essential Irish values.

So, as we collectively shake off the effects of COVID, I am confident that the future for Ireland and the future of our relations with Australia is indeed bright. By cherishing the values that have sustained us, and by taking advantage of the positive disruptions of the past two years, we will continue to go from strength to strength together.

This year has to be the last one that we celebrate St. Patrick’s Day within the constraints of COVID. All the auguries are positive for a better 2022 and beyond. And make no mistake; we will celebrate St. Patrick’s Day this year to the maximum possible. In doing so, I am happy to invite the readers of Irish Scene Magazine to join us for an on-line celebration of St. Patrick on the 17th. It can be found at www.ireland.ie/australia.

Let’s take this opportunity to connect with each other locally, to use the technology to connect with home and above all to seek out and find that other untranslatable term “the bit of craic”.☘