Ireland, the island of the saints
134 images Created 21 Jul 2014
ong ago, beyond the misty space
Of twice a thousand years
In Erin old, there dwelt a mighty race
Taller than Roman spears.
The Celts, Thomas D'Arcy McGeeís
The celts have left deep roots in Ireland, not only stone circles and monuments but legends that often originate from Celtic locations still found on the hills or near the rivers. Near the Neolithic tombs and sacred places, hidden treasures are protected by spirits that frighten searchers by assuming hideous shapes. The old traditions of magic and witchcraft survived so strongly that still today, you can find reverence for holy wells and trees inhabited by the fairies. The Hill of Tara, according to tradition, was the seat of Árd Rí na hÉireann, the High Kings of Ireland, a sort of Celtic Camelot where the High Kings were crowned with the Stone of Destiny. Louchgrew Hills, near Oldcastle, is the site of megalithic burial grounds dating back to approximately 3500 and 3300 BC, situated over the top of a hill in the middle of hills and valleys. Lozenge, leaf shapes, circles, and radiating lines created a unique style of megalithic petroglyphs. Newgrange, older than the Pyramids of Egypt, is a complex of burial chambers inside mounds of about 80 metres in diameter. Into this Ireland of warrior princes and cattle raids, St. Patrick preached the Christian faith in the mid-fifth century, but a country with such a strong culture, incorporated into the Christian tradition even the holy places and objects of pre-Christian Ireland. The monastery of Clonmacnoise, founded between 545 and 548 by Ciarán Mac a tSaor, became the most famous in Ireland, visited by scholars from all over Europe, and became the graveyard of many high kings of Tara and Connacht. On the Irish Far-West, in the Dingle peninsula, The Gallarus Oratory was built with a technique developed by Neolithic tomb-makers.
Of twice a thousand years
In Erin old, there dwelt a mighty race
Taller than Roman spears.
The Celts, Thomas D'Arcy McGeeís
The celts have left deep roots in Ireland, not only stone circles and monuments but legends that often originate from Celtic locations still found on the hills or near the rivers. Near the Neolithic tombs and sacred places, hidden treasures are protected by spirits that frighten searchers by assuming hideous shapes. The old traditions of magic and witchcraft survived so strongly that still today, you can find reverence for holy wells and trees inhabited by the fairies. The Hill of Tara, according to tradition, was the seat of Árd Rí na hÉireann, the High Kings of Ireland, a sort of Celtic Camelot where the High Kings were crowned with the Stone of Destiny. Louchgrew Hills, near Oldcastle, is the site of megalithic burial grounds dating back to approximately 3500 and 3300 BC, situated over the top of a hill in the middle of hills and valleys. Lozenge, leaf shapes, circles, and radiating lines created a unique style of megalithic petroglyphs. Newgrange, older than the Pyramids of Egypt, is a complex of burial chambers inside mounds of about 80 metres in diameter. Into this Ireland of warrior princes and cattle raids, St. Patrick preached the Christian faith in the mid-fifth century, but a country with such a strong culture, incorporated into the Christian tradition even the holy places and objects of pre-Christian Ireland. The monastery of Clonmacnoise, founded between 545 and 548 by Ciarán Mac a tSaor, became the most famous in Ireland, visited by scholars from all over Europe, and became the graveyard of many high kings of Tara and Connacht. On the Irish Far-West, in the Dingle peninsula, The Gallarus Oratory was built with a technique developed by Neolithic tomb-makers.
