A tour of Ancient Ireland
 |  |  |  |
Memories of ancient Ireland appear in solid form all over the country. This trail introduces a selection of the greatest of them, spanning a time period of more than four thousand years, from stone age builders to medieval monks and warlords. There is more than antiquarian interest in a trip like this - it take you through a great swathe of Irish countryside, much of it scarcely known to casual visitors and all of it beautiful and exciting. It's a great way to discover the hidden Ireland. Beginning in Belfast, it heads off to the west through County Monaghan, over to the Atlantic seaboard of Sligo and Donegal and back along the Antrim coast.
This tour is set out in four parts - five if you include the circuit Inishowen. The distances are relatively short to allow plenty of time to look at the brilliant things that the tour presents.
Belfast to Enniskillen 180 km
An easy drive, mostly by motorway, connects Belfast to Armagh City. The road southwest from Armagh goes though Monaghan Town where an excellent museum contains a fine collection of ancient artefacts. The central square in the neighbouring town of Clones is dominated by a Celtic cross and the graveyard nearby has a round tower. They are fine specimens of the two symbols of ancient Ireland that were adopted in the 19th century enthusiasts adopted and used on all possible occasions. In spite of their familiarity in the souvenir market, they really are very significant objects - partly because of their great antiquity, round about a thousand years old, partly because the concepts are almost uniquely Irish and, above all, because they represent a great flowering of architectural and artistic skills.
The cross in Clones follows the usual pattern of design: on one face scenes from the Old Testament are shown in panels, with illustrations of New Testament stories on the other. The sides are decorated with marvellous abstract designs of the same kind that may be seen in the Book of Kells and in contemporary metalwork. Some of the panels, such as Adam and Eve and a Crucifixion are easy to identify. Others continue to give art historians food for argument. The round tower is 75 feet high, so well built that it remains standing after a thousand years, with all its surrounding buildings long since reduced to ruins. These structures were primarily bell towers, but very useful for refuge when the Vikings or neighbouring clans arrived on pillaging raids.
From Clones go south to Cootehill to see the 'giant's grave' of Cohaw. It consists of a narrow rectangle bordered by more or less flat boulders, up to chest-height. At each end there is an open-ended 'court' made from similar stones. Excavation led to the discovery of a pottery vessel and the remains of three young people. Court cairns are regarded as the oldest structures in Ireland and are dated to between 2,000 and 3,000 years BC.
Enniskillen to Sligo 120 km
Go north to Enniskillen and find a boat for the island of Devenish, one of many lake islands in Ireland where communities of monks established themselves. Lake isles at the time were far from being retreats from the world: they were on the main routes through Ireland which followed the big waterways. The monastery at Devenish was founded by St. Molaise in the 6th century and enjoyed a thousand years as a great centre of worship. The round tower dominates a scattering of medieval ruins.
From Enniskillen go south to Dromahair and Creevelea Abbey, where pious members of the royal O'Rourke family provided an extensive dwelling for Franciscan Friars in 1508. It was the last of its kind to be built in Ireland for hundreds of years. Follow the shores of Lough Gill to Parke's Castle, a fine 17th century stronghold and then go through Sligo town to the wonderful Bricklieve Mountains where exceedingly narrow roads lead to a great collection of passage graves on a lonely hilltop with a wonderful view. The passage grave builders constructed their monuments more than 4,000 years ago.
Sligo to Derry City 140 km
North of Sligo, at Drumcliff, is another Celtic cross, even more splendid that the cross in Clones. And north of Drumcliff, at Cliffoney, is another court tomb - this one sited very conveniently close to the roadside and considered the very best of its kind. Donegal town, at the head of a long sea inlet, has a particularly fine castle, that has recently been restored. It was built by the royal O'Donnell family to replace a much earlier Viking stronghold.
The route goes north through the marvellous scenery of County Donegal to reach the Grianan of Aileach near Letterkenny. This is a colossal circular enclosure, with massive stone walls, built on the top of a hill overlooking Lough Swilly and Lough Foyle and the lovely Inishowen Peninsula. The Grianan dates to the iron age, round about two thousand years ago, but it continued to be used for centuries.
Derry City to Belfast 180 km
A diversion of about 160 km to make a circuit of Inishowen takes in a very early sculpted cross at Fahan, some delightful sculptures at Carndonagh and a fine medieval castle at Greencastle. Otherwise the route goes through the historic city of Derry, renamed Londonderry when it was encircled with town walls - the only complete set in Ireland - early in the 17th century. Then comes the wonderful Causeway Coast, much of which is in sight of Scotland and where castles were built to discourage the neighbours from visiting. The greatest of these is Dunluce - so precariously perched on the clifftop that half the castle fell away one stormy night when the cliff collapsed.
Far from being an antique, in the sense of something made by man, the rock formations of the Giant's Causeway provide the most magnificent scenery anywhere in Ireland and must not be missed. The coast road continues round to Carrickfergus. Seven hundred years before Belfast was more than a swampy settlement, this was the major port of entry for the northeast of Ireland. It is the site of one of the very best castles in Ireland, so well built and well preserved that it almost looks like new. It remains a solid bastion of black basalt blocks - though transformed from a symbol of aggression to a welcoming museum and viewing point. Belfast is a relatively new city - but it is also the home of the Ulster Museum - where you may feast your eyes on the smaller artefacts of the people who built and lived in the ancient places on the route.
FURTHER INFORMATION
For further information on any of the items featured above, or on the counties in general, please contact:
Fáilte Ireland North West
Aras Reddan
Temple Street
Sligo
Tel: 00353 (0) 7191 61201
Fax: 00353 (0) 719160360
Email: northwestinfo@failteireland.ie
Web: www.irelandnorthwest.ie
Fermanagh Lakeland Tourism
Fermanagh Tourist Information Centre
Wellington Road
Enniskillen
BT74 7EF
Northern Ireland
Tel: 0044 (0) 28 6632 3110
Fax: 0044 (0) 28 6632 5511
Email: info@fermanaghlakelands.com
Web: www.findfermanagh.com
Derry Visitor and Convention Bureau
44 Foyle Street
Derry
BT48 6TE
Northern Ireland
Tel: 0044 (0) 28 7137 7577
Fax: 0044 (0) 28 7137 7992
Email: info@derryvisitor.com
Web: www.derryvisitor.com
Causeway Coast & Glens
11 Lodge Road
Coleraine
BT52 1LU
Northern Ireland
Tel: 0044 (0) 28 7032 7720
Fax:0044 (0) 28 7032 7719
Email: mail@causewaycoastandglens.com
Web: www.causewaycoastandglens.com
