We are delighted to announce that we are now taking pre-orders for
our new book Longford's Ancient Ways. The book is a celebration of our
county's mythology, folklore and biodiversity as we look at how the
ancient festivals of Samhain, Imbolc, Bealtaine and Lúnasa continue to
be celebrated from times past to today. Launching it on the eve of the
first Bank Holiday to celebrate St Brigid's Day makes it even more
special as we now have a public holiday to mark each of the turnings of
the seasons.
The book is a visual feast, full of our photos and
illustrations as well as our words and stories. Watch this space for
more details over the coming weeks. Pre-order your copy here.
Now taking bookings for visits to schools between September and December through the Heritage in Schools scheme: www.heritageinschools.ie.
Ann or Annette can come to your school for one day, or if you book five
sessions with the same specialist the fifth visit is free. Choose from
Storytelling and mythology; Life in the Iron Age; Exploring your
Townland or Biodiversity in the school garden.
Scéalta
Beo come in Celtic costume and have props and visual aids to enhance
their storytelling. Mythology and storytelling helped our ancestors
understand and deal with crisis, which makes them very important tools
in this era of climate change. We tell many of the ancient stories of
the Tuatha Dé Dannan our favourite being the local legend of Midir
and Etain. Midir was known as a judge and given the task of restoring
the balance which is very relevant to the times we live in.
Life in the Iron Age
Interactive practical activities, discussions and
stories combine to demonstrate what life was like in Iron Age/Early
Medieval Ireland. The session(s) can cover aspects of society and every
day activities: buildings, clothing, jewellery and metalwork, food, biodiversity,
games such as fidchell, weaving, foraging, natural dyeing, Brehon Laws
including the importance of trees, fire festivals and ogham script.
Exploring your Townland
Discover
all you need to research and explore your townland: delve into its
history, find out the meaning of its name and look at local built and
natural heritage close up. Using this as inspiration create your own art
or writing based on what you learn.
Whether
you want to design a vegetable garden from scratch, develop sensory
areas, get guidance for the Biodiversity Green Flag or just look closely
at native trees, mini-beasts or animal habitats around your school,
Scéalta Beo can help you explore and creatively
interact with the outdoor learning environment, getting hands-on
experience and connecting with the living stories all around us.
Join
us in Ardagh Heritage and Creativity Centre from 12 to 1pm and in
Corlea Trackway Centre from 3 to 4pm on Sunday 21st for a fun-filled
retelling of the tale of Midir, Etain, Eochaidh, some games of fidchell
and a road in the bog.
A jointly hosted event by Creative Ardagh / Scealta Beo and Corlea Trackway Visitor Centre/OPW.
An imaginative, humorous adaption of the epic love story of Midir & Etain for you to enjoy.
This is the story of the fierce, handsome Midir, of the Tuatha de Danann, and Etaín, the most beautiful woman in Ireland.
A tale of love, jealousy, loss, magic, shape shifting, Fidchell, impossible tasks and a giant causeway of Oak .
Performed by local actors, Scéalta Beo & Clann Chorr Re-enactors in two acts.
Act 1: Midir, Etain & Bri Leith,
Time: 12.00pm - 1.00pm
Venue: Ardagh Heritage & Creativity Centre and Grounds.
Act 2: Midir, Etain, Eochaidh & The Trackway
Time: 3.00pm - 4.00pm
Venue: Corlea Trackway Visitor Centre
A two hour break is included to facilitate travel from Ardagh to Corlea via the Midir & Etain Trail & Food.
Both Mac's Shack & Foigha Bar serve delicious meals while 2 Mugs Coffee Trailer offers coffee, teas, light refreshments at Mosstown Harbour.
We encourage audience participation so why not dress up and join in the fun.
No booking required. Open to all ages but children must be supervised at both venues.
For further information please contact the Visitor Centre at 043 3322386/corlea@opw.ie or Ardagh Heritage & Creativity Centre 086 3027602 / creativeardagh@gmail.com
The annual Bilberry Sunday walk takes place on 31st July 2022 in association with Crúthu Arts Festival. Join us for some or all of the celebrations:
11am
Meet at Ardagh GAA Pitch and follow our local guide and wealth of knowledge Brendan Farrell of Ardagh Village Landscapes along the Brí Leith Walk. We will be accompanied by our local Celtic Re-enactors Clann Chorr and Scéalta Beo storytellers.
1pm (ish)
Everyone is welcome to picnic in the garden of the Neighbourhood Park at Ardagh Heritage and Creativity Centre. Don't forget to bring your picnic blankets and picnic!
2pm
Our special guest this year is Anthony Murphy of Mythical Ireland who will give a talk about the important connections between Brí Léith (Ardagh) and Newgrange as they are found in the romantic tale Tochmarc Étaín (the Wooing of Étaín).
Anthony has been studying the mythology of the Brú na Bóinne complex for over 20 years and has found some fascinating material in the old stories. He is an author, tour guide and photographer from Drogheda. He has published nine books inspired by the mythology and archaeology of the great prehistoric monuments of the Boyne Valley. In 2018, he discovered the remains of a giant late Neolithic henge close to Newgrange. He curates the Mythical Ireland website and social media channels and broadcasts a weekly livestream. He has appeared as an expert on the Boyne Valley on the History Channel, National Geographic, Discovery Science and Channel 4.
We are delighted to now be taking bookings for visits to schools through the Heritage in Schools scheme. Between February and June Ann or Annette
can come to your school and guide you and your students through one of
our fun-filled, interactive heritage workshop sessions. The scheme aims
to raise awareness and to help children and their teachers appreciate
their local heritage by engaging with it in a meaningful way.
Place-based learning in the outdoor classroom is also encouraged.
Visits
are part-funded by the Heritage Council so the cost to the school for a
full day with a heritage specialist is only €100 (€60 for DEIS schools)
and half day visits are €60 (€40 for DEIS schools). If you book the
same specialist for 5 sessions the 5th visit is free for the school.
Contact us at creativeardagh@gmail.com to arrange a date in advance, then book your visit through the Heritage in Schools website.
Storytelling and Mythology
Scéalta Beo come in Celtic costume and have props and visual aids to
enhance their storytelling. Mythology and storytelling helped our
ancestors understand and deal with crisis, which makes them very
important tools in this era of climate change. We tell many of the
ancient stories of the Tuatha Dé Dannan our favourite being the local
legend of Midir and Etain. Midir was known as a judge and given the task
of restoring the balance which is very relevant to the times we live
in.
Interactive practical activities, discussions and stories combine to
demonstrate what life was like in Iron Age/Early Medieval Ireland. The
session(s) can cover aspects of society and every day activities:
buildings, clothing, jewellery and metalwork, food, biodiversity, games
such as fidchell, weaving, foraging, natural dyeing, Brehon Laws
including the importance of trees, fire festivals and ogham script.
Discover all you need to research and explore your townland: delve into
its history, find out the meaning of its name and look at local built
and natural heritage close up. Using this as inspiration create your own
art or writing based on what you learn.
Whether you want to design a vegetable garden from scratch, develop
sensory areas, get guidance for the Biodiversity Green Flag or just look
closely at native trees, mini-beasts or animal habitats around your
school, Scéalta Beo can help you explore and creatively interact with
the outdoor learning environment, getting hands-on experience and
connecting with the living stories all around us.
Fadó, fadó Midir was
tasked by Eochaidh with creating a road over the bog. Eochaidh did
not keep his end of the bargain and sent out a spy to watch the
spectacle. Midir then built a deliberate fault in the road, so it
wouldn't last.
This story had been told orally for centuries before
being written down by the monks who carefully recorded The Wooing of
Etain in Lebor na hUidre and the Yellow Book of Lecan in the 12th and
15th Centuries.
The road in question was uncovered in the early 1980s
at Corlea, near Kenagh, Co. Longford. Constructed in 148AD it was
found to have lasted a very short time, around ten years, before
sinking back into the bog which preserved it.
One theory is that it
had a ceremonial use and so was needed only for enough time to
fulfill its purpose. The people of the time experienced many years of
failed crops and hunger, brought about by climate change, so drastic
action was needed. Back then this involved a huge community effort,
getting together to cut down the 100s of oak and birch trees needed
to make the road, cutting, shaping and transporting them into place,
before sacrificing their king to appease the gods and restore balance
to nature and food abundance to the people.
Throughout history there
have been other times when nature was out of balance requiring
drastic measures. Now, with climate disasters making headlines we
need action again. We can feel helpless when faced with global
problems, but solutions may be found closer to home in our natural
heritage.
We need community effort to plant trees, re-wild areas, add
biodiversity and work with nature instead of against her. Time is
running out to restore abundance and benefit all life. We can start
with our own gardens.
This Heritage Week Scéalta Beo will show what
we’ve been doing in a series of videos including some of the
following: attracting pollinators, foraging in the garden, food
forests, pond life, saving seeds, growing vegetables, keeping
chickens and embracing weeds.
We are starting a collection of living
stories: local plant heritage and lore. Pat Kelleher will share the
story of the kale that has been growing for generations in his
garden. He gave us plants last year and we have saved seeds to share
at our in person event. Brendan Farrell will tell us of his
grandfather’s golden osiers. We will have cuttings later in the
year.
We would like your help to gather more living stories. Have you
had an encounter with a frog? Are you re-wilding land? Have you a
tree in your field for generations? Is your family growing vegetables
together? Whatever your story, we would love to hear it. Get in touch
to share it: scealtabeo@gmail.com
If
you would like to tell us your story in person or have some seeds or
chemical-free plants to swap come along to the 10th Anniversary event at
Ardagh Heritage and Creativity Centre:
22nd August: 2pm-4pm
Plant, seed and story
swap
We have been busy
collecting seeds and growing plants to share. We are giving away
seeds including Pat Kelleher's Kale in the hope that people will grow their own. We encourage you
to bring chemical-free plants and seeds to swap. We'll use what we
get in return in our gardens and keep seed to share next year. The
aim is to build connections, biodiversity, and keep heritage seeds in
circulation. This helps local food resilience and hopefully saves
some rare heirloom varieties for the future.
The story collection is
a very important element. Scéalta Beo means living stories and we
hope to educate and inspire, as well tapping into and storing some
vital knowledge, plant lore and memories for future generations. We
want to encourage people to garden with nature instead of against it
and save the planet while we're at it. Come along to start restoring
the balance.
This event will be outdoors and held in accordance with Covid-19 restrictions. Feel free to bring your own refreshments or picnic, but remember to leave no trace.
