| Clonfinlough Stone | |
|---|---|
| Native name Irish: Cloch Chluain Fionnlocha | |
 | |
| Type | Rock art |
| Location | Clonfinlough, Clonmacnoise, County Offaly, Ireland |
| Coordinates | 53°19′01″N7°56′13″W / 53.317058°N 7.936997°W Coordinates: 53°19′01″N7°56′13″W / 53.317058°N 7.936997°W |
| Built | Bronze Age |
  Location of Clonfinlough Stone in Ireland | |
| Official name | Clonfinlough |
| Reference no. | 336 [1] |
The Clonfinlough Stone is a piece of rock art and National Monument located near Kinnitty, County Offaly, Ireland.
The carved stone at Clonfinlough is located on the southern slope of the western end of Esker Hill, about 4 km (2+1⁄2 miles) east of Clonmacnoise, south of Mongan Bog and on the east bank of the River Shannon. [2] [3]
The carvings on the stone are believed to date back to the Bronze Age (2500–500 BC). [4] A settlement excavated nearby consisted of a large palisaded enclosure containing circular houses. [5]
However, recent studies have noted the similarity between the carvings and some found in Galicia, Spain. Clonmacnoise was connected into the medieval pilgrimage Camino de Santiago. This stone may have therefore been a stopping point for traveling pilgrims, and so suggests that the carvings, or some of them, could be by Christian pilgrims in the 13th–14th century. [6]
The stone is a glacial erratic of Carboniferous Limestone and lies flat on the ground, measures 3 metres (9.8 ft) by 2.45 metres (8.0 ft) by 0.75 metres (2.5 ft) and weighs about 14 tonnes. Marks incised in it include crosses, cup-marks, the "split-year sign" (a circle divided in two), the letters DOD, and three impressions of feet. [7]
Glendalough is a glacial valley in County Wicklow, Ireland, renowned for an Early Medieval monastic settlement founded in the 6th century by St Kevin. From 1825 to 1957, the head of the Glendalough Valley was the site of a galena lead mine. Glendalough is also a recreational area for picnics, for walking along networks of maintained trails of varying difficulty, and also for rock-climbing.
A high cross or standing cross is a free-standing Christian cross made of stone and often richly decorated. There was a unique Early Medieval tradition in Ireland and Britain of raising large sculpted stone crosses, usually outdoors. These probably developed from earlier traditions using wood, perhaps with metalwork attachments, and earlier pagan Celtic memorial stones; the Pictish stones of Scotland may also have influenced the form. The earliest surviving examples seem to come from the territory of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Northumbria, which had been converted to Christianity by Irish missionaries; it remains unclear whether the form first developed in Ireland or Britain.
The Celtic cross is a form of Christian cross featuring a nimbus or ring that emerged in Ireland, France and Great Britain in the Early Middle Ages. A type of ringed cross, it became widespread through its use in the stone high crosses erected across the islands, especially in regions evangelized by Irish missionaries, from the ninth through the 12th centuries.
County Offaly is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe. It was formerly known as King's County, in honour of Philip II of Spain. Offaly County Council is the local authority for the county. The county population was 82,668 at the 2022 census.
Clonmacnoise is a ruined monastery situated in County Offaly in Ireland on the River Shannon south of Athlone, founded in 544 by Saint Ciarán, a young man from Rathcroghan, County Roscommon. Until the 9th century it had close associations with the kings of Connacht.
Aughagower or Aghagower is a small village in rural County Mayo in western Ireland. It is located about 6 km from Westport. Aughagower has around 40 houses, 1 pub and a shop, with a clear view of Croagh Patrick from Reek View. It also forms the centre of a parish of the same name which covers an area of 86.1 square miles. The village is known for its links to Saint Patrick and Tóchar Phádraig, the pilgrimage route from Ballintubber Abbey to Croagh Patrick.
Shannonbridge is a village located on the River Shannon, at the junction of the R444 and R357 regional roads in County Offaly, Ireland. It lies within the townland of Raghra, at the borders of counties Offaly, Galway and Roscommon, with the majority of the population living east of the bridge in County Offaly. As of the 2016 census, the village had a population of 175. There are two housing estates within the village. Its location along Ireland's largest river and its proximity to Clonmacnoise have contributed to tourism being a key contributor to the local economy. The village is flanked by a Special Area of Conservation – the Shannon Callows. The physical environment consists of the River Shannon, callows, boglands and the Esker Riada. The village has one of the oldest bridges still in use over the River Shannon, completed in 1757.
Durrow Abbey is a historic site in Durrow, County Offaly in Ireland. It is located off the N52 some 5 miles from Tullamore. Largely undisturbed, the site is an early medieval monastic complex of ecclesiastical and secular monuments, visible and sub-surface.
The Offaly Way is a long-distance trail in County Offaly, Ireland. It is 37 kilometres long and begins in Cadamstown and ends at Lemanaghan, on the R436 road between the towns of Clara and Ferbane. It is typically completed in two days. It is designated as a National Waymarked Trail by the National Trails Office of the Irish Sports Council and is managed by Offaly County Council, Bord na Mona and the Offaly Integrated Development Company. The trail provides a link between the Slieve Bloom Way and the Grand Canal Way.
The Little Brosna River rises near Dunkerrin, County Offaly, Ireland. It flows for 36 miles before joining the River Shannon.
The Knockeen Portal Tomb is a megalith in Knockeen, County Waterford, Ireland. It is the largest dolmen in County Waterford exhibiting a double capstone configuration, though it is not the tallest standing stone structure. It is one of the finest examples of a dolmen in Ireland.
Kinnitty Cross is a high cross and National Monument located near Kinnitty, County Offaly, Ireland.
The Clonin Earthworks, also called the Bull Ring, are a series of earthworks, and a National Monument, located in County Offaly, Ireland.
St. Mark's Cross is a high cross and National Monument located in Blessington, County Wicklow, Ireland.
St. Cronan's Church is a 10th-century Church of Ireland church in Tuamgraney, County Clare, Ireland. It is the oldest church in continuous use in Ireland. The Tuamgraney parish operates as a unit with the Mountshannon parish in the Killaloe Union of parishes in the Diocese of Tuam, Limerick and Killaloe.
The Boheh Stone, also called St. Patrick's Chair. is a piece of rock art a and National Monument located in County Mayo, Ireland.
Ballycrovane Ogham Stone is an ogham stone and National Monument located in County Cork, Ireland.
Cahergall is a stone ringfort (cashel) and National Monument located in County Kerry, Ireland.
Kilmalkedar is a medieval ecclesiastical site and National Monument located in County Kerry, Ireland.
St. Declan's Monastery, containing the remains of Ardmore Cathedral, is a former monastery and National Monument located in County Waterford, Ireland.
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