the Hill of Tara

Linnaeus

Tara. Even the name is like a soft whisper from the past. This is a fascinating site indeed. An atmosphere of mystery and solemnity pervades the Hill of Tara. This was once the seat of the High Kings of Ireland: according to tradition, 142 monarchs reigned there.

Tara, called Temair in Gaelic, was first settled in the Neolithic period. The first inhabitants would have been pre-Celts...Can anyone tell me what Irish tradition says about the founders of Tara? Where might they have come from?

Tara/Temair is so imbued with mystery, that it has even been associated with the lost Ark of the Covenant and Atlantis. These ideas are most likely quite fanciful. But a large number of monuments or complexes of uncertain origin do exist at this site. Most of them are visible but have not been completely excavated. To name just three: the Mound of the Hostages (ca. 2500 B.C.), the Lia Fail (Stone of Destiny) and a vast wooden temple (170 metres) which was recently discovered.

Tara was probably not only a seat of royal power, but a sacred place with strong spiritual connotations. Hopefully there will be more archaeological activity there in the near future: excavation which will help to shed new light on this wondrous, arcane place.

Pinkycharm

I think Tara maybe where a very interesting story may start which could link to every monument of that period! I've something in my head about it but I've to do way more research! Site has fantastic potential to unlock even more mysteries! Love it.

Linnaeus

Thanks, Pinkycharm. I'll send more posts about Tara/Temair soon.

Linnaeus

Please have a look at this site, which describes Tara:

www.ancient-wisdom.com/irelandtarahill.htm

It's a lovely article, giving lots of info about this wonderful place.

jeamimus

I believe that several of the sites were dug up (excavated wouldn't be an appropriate word) in the 19th century by amateur archaeologists and treasure hunters.

Croghan is another interesting place.

Linnaeus

Certainly many of the digs were of informal or even illicit nature. Much of the wealth of Tara would have been stolen. The amateurs, who may have had noble intentions, would nevertheless frequently have damaged precious artifacts in their unprofessional haste to remove them from the soil.

Alas, such are the hazards to our priceless archaeological heritage.

Arsemageddon

Linnaeus wrote: »

........ But a large number of monuments or complexes of uncertain origin do exist at this site. Most of them are visible but have not been completely excavated. To name just three: the Mound of the Hostages (ca. 2500 B.C.), the Lia Fail (Stone of Destiny) and a vast wooden temple (170 metres) which was recently discovered.

The Mound of the Hostages was fully excavated back in the 1950s and was finally published in 2005 or 2006. The Lia Fail is just a large boulder so it can't really be excavated. There is also the strong possibility that it is not the original stone.

Linnaeus

I simply mentioned the Mound of Hostages and the Lia Fail as monuments; my intention was not to number them among those which have been only partially excavated. The column/pillar of Lia Fail, if it is indeed the most ancient one, will have been standing up for many centuries; as far as we know it was never buried in the ruins, as so many other precious monuments and buildings surely have been at Temair.

I'm not sure about this: has an ORIGINAL royal palace been identified at Temair? Or do we have only the remains of later edifices?

jeamimus

Linnaeus wrote: »

I'm not sure about this: has an ORIGINAL royal palace been identified at Temair? Or do we have only the remains of later edifices?

I wonder if the concept of 'royal palace' is misleading in itself...

Pinkycharm

Arsemageddon wrote: »

The Mound of the Hostages was fully excavated back in the 1950s and was finally published in 2005 or 2006. The Lia Fail is just a large boulder so it can't really be excavated. There is also the strong possibility that it is not the original stone.

I thought I read before that it was taken to England---could be completely wrong.

Carawaystick

Pinkycharm wrote: »

I thought I read before that it was taken to England---could be completely wrong.

There was a thing where the Stone of Scone was claimed to be the Lia Fáil. But that was the scottish one, which in gaedhlic is also the Lia Fail

I was up there on Saturday morning for the first time. It's magic is the vagueness of the earthworks where your imagination fills in the rest. The view from the Lia Fáil is pretty impressive, I presume someone's counted how many counties you ca see from there.