Page 6 - COBH EDITION 15th FEBRUARY DIGITAL VERSION

Meet The Ancestors by Jim Shealy

Inquisitive minds will always ask the question, who are we and where did we come
from? In this article I am not going to attempt to answer that question, however
looking at the Archaeological evidence available I
hope to shed some life on who were the first in-
habitants of our home, The Great Island.

Many stories abound regarding the first settlers on
the Island. In the book ‘History of the Great Island’
by Rev. Henry Dennehy, published in 1923 it is
suggested that the island was settled by a ‘Phoe-
nician Tribe’ in or around the 6th. C. BC. This has
now been discounted as there is no archaeological
evidence for such an event.

Unfortunately here on the Great Island we find ourselves lacking in what archaeolo-
gists describe as prehistoric monuments. No megalithic structures are found on the
island, we have no standing stones, no prehistoric tombs, stone circles or dolmens.
Therefore for answers as to who were the first inhabitants on the island we have to
look at the archaeological record.

From this record it appears the oldest monuments found on the Great Island are
what are referred to as Fulacht Fia. A number of these sites are recorded on the
island mainly in the Townlands of Belgrove and Ballywilliam. Prominent throughout
the country, over 3000 are recorded in County Cork alone they are dated to the late
Neolithic, early Bronze Age, 3000 – 2000 BC.

Fulacht Fia’s are primarily recognised as sites used in the preparing of food. Nor-
mally rectangular in appearance, constructed as a trough set in the ground, varying
in size, they are generally found in proximity to water i.e., running streams or lakes.
The troughs were constructed of stone and many were found to have oak timber
sides, they would have been sealed to keep in the water. These troughs would then
be filled with water and into this water were immersed heated stones from a nearby
fire, the idea being to heat up the water to boiling point by continuing to immerse
heated stones. In Belgrove a mound of stone which would have been used for this
purpose is still clearly visible on the landscape. Food, most likely meat would have
been wrapped in straw and this food would be placed in the heated water. In ex-
perimental archaeology carried out at Ballyvourney in the 1950s, a section of meat
was cooked for approximately 90 min. and afterwards devoured with relish. Other
explanations for these sites is as Sweat houses, early saunas, or they being used in
brewing beer, now there’s a nice thought! In mythology the legendry leader of the
Fianna, Fionn Mc.Cumhaill was reputed to have bathed in a Fulacht Fia to sooth his
limbs after doing battle, another nice thought!

Unfortunately all of the Fulacht Fia sites on the Island have now been levelled, how-
ever a recent discovery found during the construction of the houses at Inis Alainn
at Ballywilliam in 2007 has been thoroughly recorded and thankfully the details are
documented and available to anyone interested in knowing more about this site. To
view the location of the Fuleach Fia originally on the Island you can visit the Nation-
al Monuments website at http://webgis.archaeology.ie/historicenvironment/