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Carlow County - Ireland Genealogical Projects (IGP TM)

Tinryland
Co. Carlow

Page 3


Tinryland - A Neolithic Inheritance

by Bernadette Scott

The parish of Tinryland has featured in the local and national news throughout 1999 because of the public debate on the location of the Carlow by-pass. The parish also featured in the news in the middle of the century when a significant archaeological discovery was made. In 1944 a local farmer ploughing a field in Linkardstown discovered a megalithic tomb containing the remains of a woman. The tomb also contained a polished stone axe and decorated necked vessels. Other finds like this were made throughout Leinster and Minister and are known in archaeological terms as Linkardstown Cists.

Why this spot was chosen as a burial site is unknown but it does indicate that the early inhabitants of this landscape were creative and artistic people and held a deep sense of place. Everyone has a sense of place and this comes from the way we think about places, how we identify ourselves with them and the local character of a place. A sense of place can come from the social or natural features in the landscape. Viewing a landscape or the features in a landscape is not a value-free exercise. Our perception is influenced by past experience, expectations and motivations. Therefore, any place will have different representations for different groups and individuals. We interpret a landscape and its meaning by relating it to our own personal framework.

The landscape in the parish of Tinryland is a product of its past character in that it has been shaped by human activity over the years. The countryside and the features of it were developed to meet social and economic needs. The character of the area has evolved out of a need to provide shelter and livelihood for its people using the local materials, which include fertile agricultural land, an abundance of granite, local skills and traditions. So the features in this landscape as in any other reflect the interaction between nature and culture. Many changes have taken place in Tinryland over the past century and many changes are envisaged in the next century. However, in the midst of the changes and improvements to the quality of life for the community, we are in danger of losing the intimacy with the landscape and the features of it.

One of the main threats is that the parish may be developed into a suburb of Carlow town. The parish is also in danger of losing its unique character due to the dominant cultural values of beautifying the countryside in the cosmetic sense because the wild and natural are unacceptable and the cultivated and structured are. Consequently, we are witnessing the urbanization of rural areas. So bit by bit, year by year we are destroying in the countryside that which attracted us to it in the first place. The landscape in the parish of Tinryland has many features which give the area its unique character. These features are part of the social history of the area. One of the many features which distinguishes the place for me is the roadside pump. The roadside pump has a nostalgic quality because it reminds people of childhood days spent in the countryside. The pump with its cow-tail handle - which is a distinctive feature of Irish public pumps - is protected by four concrete pillars.

While the County Council maintains these pumps, no register exists making it difficult to ascertain when they were installed. The pumps were constructed out of necessity as they were an important source of water for the local community. They are found all over rural Ireland and were first introduced after the Great Famine. Although Tinryland was one of the first rural areas to have electricity under the rural Electrification Scheme in 1946, there was no running water in some of the houses until 1972 when the County Council's water and sewerage mains were provided to facilitate the housing scheme in the village. So the pumps were widely used for domestic purposes in the recent past. The protective pillars are the interesting feature. The stones surrounding this pump are an example of the work of a traditional stone craftsman. This rural craft has vanished but it informs the work of modern sculptors.

There are six granite pillars surrounding the pump - originally there were eight. These granite pillars are a unique feature of the Carlow pumps mainly because of the abundance of granite and the local skills and knowledge. The vertical granite pillars are called cliffs - the horizontals are called lintels and were placed in an octagonal shape on the ground. The granite is an indigenous material which probably came from a nearby field or quarry. The process entailed the cleaving of the granite by a stonecutter using the traditional tools of picks and wedges. The stone was then dressed by a stone-dresser using a chisel and hammer and put in place by a stone mason.

The likelihood is that, in this case, the whole operation was carried out by one person. I am attracted to the arrangement and pattern of the complete installation and I put forward the following explanation. The eight stones were arranged in a circle around a central figure (the pump). This is one of the oldest religious symbols; the earliest is the sun wheel. This symbol is found in different cultures throughout the world and is used to form the solar calendar. In this case there are two circles - one vertical and one horizontal resulting in a harmonious arrangement. The layout of the stones and the pattern it forms suggests to me that this is not a random arrangement but is an example of a spiritual dimension, albeit held at a subconscious level, which is inherent in the work of all craftspeople.

It is also an example of how a previous generation of people worked in harmony with the landscape and produced work of artistic merit. Other examples are standing stones and rock art which are found throughout County Carlow. This community pump with its protective pillars is now a sculpture in the landscape but was not originally constructed as such. It was installed for a purpose but has marked the character and uniqueness of this area. There is much debate about art in public places and Carlow has many fine examples of modem public sculpture. However, it is important to be aware of the art and craft which connect us to the past.

The pumps are a feature of Tinryland and it is hoped that they will remain here and not in a museum or heritage centre. They may not be considered of major monumental significance but are relics of rural domesticity and are part of the social history of the twentieth century. The stonework surrounding the pumps presented an opportunity for artistic expression for the local craftspeople. The creative and spiritual dimension in the work reflects the interaction that the earliest inhabitants had with this landscape going back to the Neolithic period. This is what makes the parish of Tinryland a unique and special place.

References: Aalen. F.H.A. Kevin Whelan. Matthew Stout, (eds.) (1997). Atlas of the Irish Rural Landscape. Cork University Press.

Source: Carloviana - 1999 Millennium Copy


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