Isn't she lovely?

Jostles planted the seed. The cherub made sure that it grew.


Mary Kearns has written on the Jostle Stones in Ennis.  Two years ago, I met Mary and learned the name. I knew what they were but had not had reason to put a name on them before.


Since then, I have been photographing the Jostle Stones around Cork that I have seen on my travels – for future uploading.


Then last January, this lovely casting came into view and I was beset with yet another collecting bug – cast iron protectors, or wheelguards.


To date, I have found and uploaded 10 locations. They can be viewed HERE.


 Tom Spalding wrote in 2009 that there were 29 so there are still quite a few to be found. A summer of cycling and walking beckons.

“Wheelguards
The ‘wheelguard’ is a close cousin of the bollard, but intended to protect vulnerable masonry on a corner, especially by an arch, by deflecting coach wheels. They are quite rare; 29 cast iron, 22 limestone and a single red sandstone example were recorded in the survey. Unfortunately, the types of building that feature these objects, former industrial buildings, warehouses, stabling yards and so on, are particularly likely to be re-developed and/or demolished, with the result that the wheelguards get lost in the process.”
Cork City: A Field Guide to its Street Furniture – Tom Spalding