Conway Mill Trust

The Kelpie

Feb 12th, 2015 by admin

The Kelpie is a mythological, shape shifting horse that lives in the lochs of Scotland and can appear in human form. He is described as gre or green with seal like skin and said to have sea weed (or kelp) in his hair. He cannot escape the water and is said to lure humans to the water to kill them.

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Ireland’s Most Common Mammal

Feb 11th, 2015 by admin

The rabbit is Ireland’s most common mammal. It eats all sorts of young vegetation including the crops. It is not native to Ireland and was introduced by the Normans for food and game.

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Irish Knitting

Feb 10th, 2015 by admin

Knitting has been part of Irish life since earliest times. Some areas such as the Aran Islands developed intricate designs of their own, reminiscent of those used in High Crosses and stone slabs.

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Ireland’s Third Largest City

Feb 9th, 2015 by admin

Galway City is Ireland’s third largest city. It was once renowned for its’ fleet of distinctive boats called “Galway Hookers” (from the Dutch word ‘bolker’). It was a small, easily navigated vessel, designed for the heavy seas of Galway. They are no longer in use but they turn up at annual sailing races.

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Courts of Poetry

Feb 8th, 2015 by admin

By the 1720’s the Gaelic poets of old were reduced to positions of clerks, peddlers and hedge school teachers in most of Ireland. But in Munster, some poets were able to hold “Courts of Poetry” and these dealt with religious, legal and economic issues. In many cases, the poetry functioned as a form of political journalism.

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An Irish Proverb

Jan 31st, 2015 by admin

The truth comes out when the spirits go in.

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Game of Rounders

Jan 30th, 2015 by admin

Rounders is a game similar to softball. It is played between two teams that alternate between batting and fielding, with nine players per team. Rules were formulized by the Gaelic Athletic Association in Ireland in 1884. It is very popular with school children, especially girls.

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Megalithic Farmers’ Arrival in Ireland

Jan 29th, 2015 by admin

Around the end of Jan. 3,000 BC, Megalithic farmers arrived in Ireland. One of their surviving monuments is a megalithic tomb at Newgrange.

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Rowan Moon and Rowan Tree

Jan 28th, 2015 by admin

The Rowan Moon -Jan 21-Feb 17. The Rowan Moon is associated with Brighid, the Celtic goddess of hearth and home. Honored on Feb 1, (Imbolic) Brighid, offers protection to mothers and families as well as watching over the hearth fires.

The Rowan tree is associated with personal power and success. A charm carved into a bit of Rowan twig will protect the wearer from harm. Rowan is planted in graveyards to prevent the dead from lingering.

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