Robert M Chapple, Archaeologist

Surprisingly, this is not the work of a member of the People's Front of Judea . It was carried out as part of a series of racist attacks on  Romanian families last night (28th July 2014) in East Belfast – not far from my house. It’s dispiriting enough that we live in a society where such attacks are becoming relatively commonplace, but even more so when the perpetrators lack the basic education to even spell the name of the country they hate - much less realise that at least one of the families they terrorised was actually Slovakian ! My apologies, as this has precious little to do with the usual themes of this blog, beyond tickling my rather dark sense of archaeology-related humour. However, sometimes you have to take a stand and say – I do not support this, it is not done in my name: it is despicable and it is disgusting. Shame on those who carry out such attacks and shame on those who support them. Not that there's much that can be described as a ‘bright side’...

Dave Pollock is a well-known archaeologist and illustrator working in Ireland. He’s currently trying to raise funding to print his rather excellent view of Waterford as it was in the mid-17th century. If, like me, you admire his work & think it’s a worthwhile thing to do, read on from Dave himself: Waterford in the mid-17th century (click for larger version) “I’m printing a wall poster ( A1 size ) of the bird’s-eye view of Waterford in the mid-17th century, with notes on some of the points of interest scribbled on, a bit like the draft I’m holding in the photo. It’s ready to print but I can’t cover the cost so I’m looking for sponsors. I’m looking for 50 people to contribute  € 20 apiece, in return for which they will have their names recorded in small print on the margin and they will receive a signed copy in the post. This is not an advertising opportunity, I won’t be printing the names of businesses, just 50 individuals, or couples.   I don’t want money now...

Clonmacnoise Summer School | Press Release Location: Cluain Ciarán, Clonmacnoise Time: Friday 22nd – Sunday 24th August 2014 Programme FRIDAY AUGUST 22nd 1.15 REGISTRATION at Cluain Ciarán Centre. Tea/Coffee 1.55 Introduction to Summer School 2.00 ‘The spirit of the early Irish Monks’. Reverend Ray Simpson , Founding Guardian of the International Community of Ss Aidan and Hilda , Lindisfarne, Northumberland, UK 2.45 Questions and Comments 3.00 ‘ Excavation at Clonmacnoise ’ Heather King, Archaeologist, National Monuments Service . Introduction followed by Walk and Talk on site at Clonmacnoise. 3.45 Questions and Comments 4.15 Haunting music of days of yore on site in Clonmacnoise Noel Carberry, Uileann Pipes; Kirsty Naughten, Flute; Aideen Egan, Fiddle; Surprise guests Tea / Coffee A social get-together will be organized later this evening in Shannonbridge SATURDAY AUGUST 23rd 10.00 Tea/Coffee 10.30 St Columban – Christian Missionary and Fi...

[** If you like this post, please make a donation to the IR&DD project using the secure button at the right. If you think it is interesting or useful, please re-share via Facebook, Google+, Twitter etc. To help keep the site in operation, please use the amazon search portal at the right - each purchase earns a small amount of advertising revenue **] Part II | Part III > A little while back, I mentioned our family excursions to Fermanagh in the summer of 2013 and that I hoped to find a little time to put together a few lines about what we did and where we went – and (just maybe) why you should consider going for yourself! Somewhere along the way, I had decided that the trips should have a common theme and we settled on the idea of islands. The first spot on our itinerary was Boa Island. The Island lies near the northern shore of Lough Erne and is connected by road bridges (A47) to the mainland – so no need to hire a boat or get your feet wet! If you’ve got even a...

[** If you like this post, please make a donation to the IR&DD project using the secure button at the right. If you think it is interesting or useful, please re-share via Facebook, Google+, Twitter etc. To help keep the site in operation, please use the amazon search portal at the right - each purchase earns a small amount of advertising revenue **] I'm being haunted ... and it's all the fault of modern technology. I've been dawdling, not knowing how to start this post. Here’s the problem: Just about everyone who has ever written anything – from a school days essay, or a peer reviewed paper, to a bodice-ripper novel – knows that you need to have three things to make it work: a beginning, a middle, and an end. The middle and end aren’t a problem – I’ve got them nailed! It’s the beginning that’s giving me trouble. I’m like the opposite of Mr Spiggott, the one legged actor, applying for the role of Tarzan – it’s not that I am missing a beginning, it’s that...

The Aughrim Remembered Summer School is taking place on Friday 18th, Saturday 19th and Sunday 20th July 2014 in the village of Aughrim, Ballinasloe, Co. Galway. The theme for this year’s Summer school is ‘From the Battle of Aughrim to World War 1’ The weekend event starts at 7pm on Friday 18th July in St. Catherine’s Hall, Aughrim, Ballinasloe with the local choir who will sing a selection of World War 1 songs. This will be followed by a series of talks ‘World War 1: some local connections. The first talk will be by Joe Loughnane and Colman Shaughnessy who will talk about ‘The Connaught Rangers and World War 1’. This will be followed by two short talks on by Helen Mannion, an Aughrim local who will talk about her father’s involvement on World War 1, while Kevin Goode, another local will also talk about his family’s involvement in the Great War. This will be followed by a Two Act Play, entitled ‘March Away My Brothers’. The play has been written and will be performed by ...

[** If you like this post, please make a donation to the IR&DD project using the secure button at the right. If you think it is interesting or useful, please re-share via Facebook, Google+, Twitter etc. To help keep the site in operation, please use the amazon search portal at the right - each purchase earns a small amount of advertising revenue **] Part II | Part III >   Prof. Etienne Rynne leading a UCG Arch Soc group on Scattery Island , Co. Clare, in 1996 (© Chapple Collection) Prof. Etienne Rynne passed away on the 22nd of June 2012. Since that time I’ve wanted to write something about him for this blog. And herein lies the difficulty: Etienne and I had – to put it mildly – a tempestuous relationship … at times we were the best of friends … and at other times … less so. In the aftermath of his death I thought about putting pen to paper … but what could I write? The appreciation that appeared, from Terry Barry , in Antiquity is fine insofar as it ...