Steeped in mythology and immersed in over two millennia of history, the Rock of Cashel is one of Ireland’s most important archaeological sites. Prior to the arrival of the Normans, the Rock of Cashel...
The leprechaun is perhaps one of the best-known creatures in Irish folklore. Leprechauns are popularly depicted as little men with beards dressed in green coats and tall green hats. Other well-known...
In 2015 archaeologists made a fascinating discovery when cannons from the La Juliana, a merchant vessel commandeered by King Phillip II of Spain into the Spanish Armada, were washed into shallow...
Star Wars is many things to many people: nostalgia-tinted staple of childhood memory, space opera extraordinaire, modern day merchandising behemoth. For every starry-eyed fan there is probably a...
As science progresses and archaeologists are forging new positive relationships with developers around Irish heritage, more secrets from Ireland’s Viking past are coming to light, and they are not...
Ireland’s history is rich in dramatic myth and mysterious legends. The significance of the natural world, and most importantly the sun, was obvious in the daily lives of the pre-Christian Irish...
Bloodthirsty, warrior giants which came from far across the sea? Or was it the underworld? Perhaps they were more like monsters with a single leg, arm, and eye? No, it was heads of goats they had…or...
Saint Brendan (also referred to by his various epithets ‘the Navigator’, ‘the Voyager’, ‘the Anchorite’, and ‘the Bold’) was an Irish saint who lived between the 5th and 6th centuries AD known for...
Along with the harp and Saint Patrick, leprechauns have become iconic of Ireland. These mischievous fairies; with their green coats and hats, pots of gold at the edge of rainbows, and promise of...
A medieval ringfort that contained a jewelry workshop and substantial farming has been unearthed in an eye-opener archaeological discovery during a road project about a mile north of Roscommon town...
Around the 12th century, the mysterious kingdom of Ailech created many precious objects that now feature as artifacts in museum collections and fascinate many people. These settlers also constructed...
Legends suggest that the green hills of Ireland have always been a place for fairy games. According to local beliefs, the forests were full of hidden settlements inhabited by supernatural creatures...
To hear her harrowing wail tear through the night sky was an omen of certain death. The cry of the banshee implied that someone in your family had died or was about to– or, that you were about to...
The golden treasure called the Broighter Hoard was found at the site of Lough Foyle, near Limavady in Northern Ireland at the end of the 19th century. Its discoverers couldn't believe their eyes when...
The Newgrange (New Grange) tumulus is found in County Meath, Ireland. This ancient site is connected to stories about magic, fairies, and incredible excavations. Newgrange is a part of the impressive...
One of the most prominent characters of Irish mythology and literature, Lugh Lama-fada, served as the High King of Ireland for 20 years before his unfortunate death at the hands of the sons of...
Horses have long been an important aspect in both western and eastern cultures. They are considered common in Indo-European traditions, with Chinese and Turkish traditions providing the most well-...
The hedgehog is a type of mammal that can be found in parts of Europe, Africa, and Asia. Unlike some animals, such as the fish or the dog, the hedgehog does not feature prominently in mythology and...
The legend of Irish Milesians is one of the strangest stories connected with the origins of these islanders. Where did they come from? Is it possible that the early ancestors of modern Irish people...
An archaeologist studying musical horns from iron-age Ireland has found musical traditions, thought to be long dead, are alive and well in south India. The realization that modern Indian horns are...
In medieval Irish legends they were called Banduri or Bandorai. Their existence was confirmed by ancient Greek and Roman writers. But who were the legendary female Druids? The Druids were the ancient...
A fulacht fiadh (spelled also as fulacht fian ) (the plural form being fulachtai fia ) is a type of archaeological feature found in Ireland. Such features have also been found in other parts of the...
In ancient Greece there was a large and dangerous sea monster called the aspidochelone , which could be translated as asp-turtle . The people who described it for centuries probably just saw a whale...
While researchers were analyzing the genes of prehistoric Irish ancestors they discovered that the beginning of a “Celtic Curse” (haemochromatosis) probably arose 4,000 years ago with a wave of...