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Commemorative Stones

4/8/2023

It was only recently that I discovered the difference between a headstone and a gravestone – a headstone being at foot of grave and gravestone being at head of grave.

Walking Kilshannig Cemetery, I got to wondering as to what commemorative stones for those who have been cremated are called, or will be called.

Ten years ago, in Derrynane, was when I first realised that stone memorials were erected to those who have been cremated. Somewhat reminiscent of cillín burials, the memorials were just outside the cemetery with a lovely view over the bay.

A few years back, I noted, with a smile, the memorial to Josephine Deane built into the boundary wall of the cemetery. This week, a return visit brought me to a new stone inserted into the wall remembering Pat Crowley / Pádraig Ó Crualaoch.

I have mentally filed these as commemorative stones, until told otherwise……..

Another stone in wall - not of the type of the wall construction

Be Buddies Not Bullies

12/7/2023

I noticed this sticker on a pole on the Dingle peninsula while the younger generation were pier-jumping.

I had not seen this sticker before. I cannot recall having seen that message. I had not a recollection of hearing of the life, death or inquest of Eden Heaslip, who took his own life in September 2021, two weeks after his 18th birthday.

When I spotted a similar sticker on a car in a church car park a few weeks back, that was enough reason for this blog post.

Guard Dog

11/7/2023

St. Patrick's Cemetery, Coronea, Skibbereen

Maybe it was a memory of the story of Greyfriars Bobby ………

Maybe I remembered the funeral, during pandemic restrictions, of Margo Magan in Co. Longford where the image of her dog following the hearse went viral, in a good way….

Maybe I liked and remembered the story told of the previous owner of the Lota Beg in Tivoli who was so thankful of his Irish wolfhound rescuing him from drowning that he had a statue of the dog placed over the entrance.

I did look for the name of the person buried but could not find it. The name of the dog, likewise, evaded my detection.

I did not rub the dog’s nose but did give it a friendly pat on the head – he brought a definite smile and helped me forget, for a little while, that my socks were wet through my shoes.

Carved In Stone

11/7/2023

St. Martins, Templemartin

My inclination would be to spell the name as JOHANNA. In 1811, maybe JOHANA was a variation in use. But JOHAXA just looks wrong.

Maybe that was her name.

Maybe it was a correction of a mirrored N – similar to Liscleary – but one would expect removal of the incorrect diagonal if that were the case.

If a correction was to be done, I would have expected IHS to have been transformed into HIS.

The Devil Is In The Detail

10/7/2023

There I was, on MacCurtain St, walking at speed after a van that was not travelling fast in the traffic. I had arranged to meet CC for a coffee and he was slightly perplexed as I went past the café in chase of a moving van.

The driver of the vehicle behind was equally perplexed when he saw me taking a photograph.

Even when I asked him to look at the spelling of the final word, he did not get it. I had to point out that DETAILING does not end in NIG.

I am unsure as to what ‘Mobile Detailing’ might entail but am fairly sure that it should not be spelled as ‘Mobile Detailnig’.

And, after that, we still had time for the coffee……

Opercula - Is Its Time Up?

9/7/2023

Predicting More Cork Heritage To Be Removed

Then

Now

Following on from the post about the benchmark at the bottom of St Patricks’s Hill, it looks suspiciously like more aspects of Cork Heritage may not be compatible with current public realm design.

These iron covers on the lower section of St Patrick’s Hill are not manhole covers. They most probably have not been used for very many years. These are remnants of a time past when coal was delivered and the large houses had a coal bunker, generally under the footpath. Coal was delivered into the coal bunker through these coal plates.

Many of the bunkers have been blocked up so most of these coal plates remain as just a visible record off times past. They are non-functioning but is that a reason to strip them out and replace them with the bland palate of our public realm designers?

I do like reminders of past work practices and of how people lived. These coal plates could easily be retained and incorporated into a street design but as it is Cork City Council, I am not hopeful.

Opercula, the plural of Operculum, is the name used for the structure to cover an opening. Christopher Howse on twitter has photographed over a thousand London coal plates – many of which are decorative, as are some in Dublin. A book by Shephard Taylor called Opercula: London Coal Plates was published in 1929.

I have encountered coal plates in Cork on Lover’s Walk, Montenotte Road, Patrick’s Hill, Summerhill, Wellington Road, and Upper John St.. Most are not very decorative.

If this is meant to be the Victorian Quarter, I would have thought that this was an opportunity to incorporate into a tourist trail of how things were done, but I do not hold out much hope.

p.s. The response from Cork City Council to the now Lord Mayor about the benchmark was:
“it is not possible to retain the benchmark in its current location; it is to be incorporated into the new public realm enhancements in the vicinity”

J. O’Dell’s Work

8/7/2023

Another piece of architectural heritage from the childhood neighbourhood – this one on O’Mahony’s Avenue

Another name marked into ironwork that I did not see until recently

J. O’Dell does not have the same internet profile as MacFarlane Castings so has gone onto my own To Find Out More List

A Railway Gate

7/7/2023

I think it was from James Dillon on twitter that I learn of a design for gates used by railways company/companies

Last Saturday, I was on the wrong side of the tracks for the Knocklong Rescue plaque but was very happy to be rewarded with a meeting with a railway gate.

On other side of Limerick-Limerick Junction rail line

MacFarlane Castings

6/7/2023

I have blogged previously as to the attraction and admiration of the Blacksmith and his forge – and not just once or twice.

It does bring a smile every time I see a maker or foundry name marked into a iron railings; road gulley; manhole cover; bridges; or, as in this instance, a gate.

This gate was on my way to secondary school and I have walked past in the decades since but it was only recently that I spotted that the name of MacFarlane Castings

David Mitchell on twitter educates that Walter MacFarlane, born in 1818, created what became ‘the largest architectural ironfounding firm of its kind in the world’ – you could do worse than spend a few minutes scrolling there

Planning permission was recently granted for adaption of the building. The applicant and the architect do give home that I will be seeing MacFarlane Castings for some time

Another Benchmark

5/7/2023

Unlike St Patrick’s Hill, this one is still in-situ

A few weeks back, spotted a benchmark on top of the key wall at Camden Quay.

I have walked this way more than once or twice but only noticed it a few weeks ago.

Hidden in plain sight

What is rare is beautiful…..

14/6/2023

Seamus Murphy headstones are beautiful examples of stone carving, to these eyes at least. An encounter with an uncatalogued Seamus Murphy headstone is even more so.

There is the anticipation as you spot the thickness and shape of the stone from a distance. The serrated grooves to the edge face and return raise expectation. Getting nearer, the lettering (particularly if red) will have you nearly convinced.

After standing back to admire, then the search for the letter cutter’s signature is the confirmation that life is good. It is time to stand back, enjoy and appreciate – and then, just like those two early evening pints with a long lost friend who you just bumped into on the way home, leave happier and in a better space.

I have seen a few headstones by Seamus Murphy not in the Crawford Art Gallery book of his work, so they do exist. It was just that last Sunday morning, taking some me time strolling around Douglas Cemetery, I was not expecting to see such a headstone.

Just like pints – the unplanned meetings with headstones can be the best.

A Little Piece of Heritage – Gone

13/6/2023

The above photographs were taken at the bottom of St Patrick’s Hill on the 24th May. When I saw the eastern side of the hill barricaded off, I did fear for the fate of the benchmark.

Benchmarks as a useful piece of data have long been replaced by GPS. As a mark on the fabric of the city recording how things were done in the past, they are a mark of history. I particularly liked this one as it was in the kerb on St. Patrick’s Hill. I have seen many on stone pillars, less in brickwork – on a kerb is very rare.

The photographs below were taken just 5 days later, on 29th May. The kerbs had all been removed. They have not returned since.

When demolition of the existing warehouse was being carried out in advance of the construction of 1, Albert Quay, I did ask as to whether the old fire cock sign might be available. I was told that it was being retained and was to be re-applied to the new building. It is now on the new building, complete with a new colour scheme.

It is as functional as a benchmark but its heritage value was appreciated by someone with decision making powers - thankfully

Another Lightning Strike

13/12/2022

Last Sunday, once again, I received the lesson that one is very unlikely to record all of a particular thing – there always is the rick that one exists somewhere I just have not been before. This time is was the E.S.B. Lightning logo.

Castle Avenue in Monkstown was the road not travelled before. And there it was.

It has prompted me to put a webpage together of those that I have encountered and recorded - HERE

The Steady Hand To Victory

12/12/2022

Our conversational Irish walk was a bit puzzled yesterday.

Our monthly siúlóid took us through Monkstown Demense. As we we exiting the estate before heading back down Glen Road to the village, we tried, and failed to figure out the meaning of the words carved into the archways on either side of the road.

LÁMH FOIS TENACHABÚ

The archways facing the road read Monkstown Demense so it was not a translation.

Lámh Fois Tenachabú had us stumped – not too difficult for my level of Gaeilge but it had all of us beaten. Jerry did think it may have something to do with the motto for the estate – top marks.

Learning can be difficult enough – even relearning. But it definitely does not helped when the mason or letter carver sets out not to make things easy. The number of stones in the arch mean that these two options would have been equally easy to cut:

LÁMH FOIS TENACHABÚ

LÁMH FOIST- ENACH ABÚ

The latter option may well have been read as Lámh Foistenach Abú which translates as The Steady Hand To Victory. If there was an O’Sullivan among the group, we may have had greater success in interpreting as it is the motto of the O’Sullivan’s.

LÁMH FOISTENACH ABÚ

Monkstown Demense

A Headstone Jigsaw

9/12/2022

Written In Stone ≠ Forever

Last Sunday, a trip to west Clare, brought me face to face with a phenomenon new to me.

In the Church of Ireland cemetery in Kilrush, many of the headstones appear to be of local Liscannor stone, a lovely, dark and grooved stone. I am familiar with its use for hearths and paving. My graveyard rambles have not extended often to County Clare so I cannot recall seeing many headstones using this stone. Its proximity and availability most probably accounts for the number encountered last Sunday.

The main purpose of my visit was to view the Famine Memorial and shortly after, I stopped.

Initially it looked like pieces of stone were dumped on top of a flat headstone. More investigation suggested that a layer of the stone had delaminated. In doing so, the thin layer had broken into many pieces.

I really enjoyed Jean Sprackland’s book a few years ago. My copy has many hand-written notes – marginalia of sorts, being located in the blank end pages. One of these notes refer to the quoted piece which seriously impacted when I read it.

Jigsaws were me growing up. They allowed escape from participation and conversation.

I would so love the time and permission to assemble the stones – to ensure that the headstone is read, even for just one more time.

‘The surface of this headstone is breaking up into large, thin flakes, peeling away and exposing the softer layer beneath. In the damp fissure between the two, black mould has found lodging. The texture of the spalling stone is so unusual that I can’t resist reaching out and touching it lightly with my fingertips, and to my horror the phrase Loving Memory falls off in one piece onto the grass.

Sandstone is particularly prone to this kind of weathering, where moisture seeps between the layers; either rising, wicked up, from the earth beneath like drink through a straw, or hurled at the face of the stone as rain, freighted with windborne salt or acid. Sometimes the entire surface is sloughed in a single sheet, the stone underneath still bearing the shape of the letters and images carved through from above. A bad case of spalling can erase the inscription, like an attack of total amnesia.’

Jean Sprackland – These Silent Mansions: A Life in Graveyards

‘There are three deaths. The first when the body ceases to function. The second when the body is consigned to the grave. The third is that moment, sometime in the future, when your name is spoken for the last time’

David Eagleman - Sum: Forty Tales From The Afterlives

I read this quote first on a tweet by Louvain Rees . The book has been purchased and well thumbed. The quote more than once used in cards of sympathy. It also made it into the Examiner for my mother’s anniversary message. The quote definitely hit a home here….