CRAGGAUNOWEN

Another one of these parks that the Irish seem to be fond of and which reconstitutes the environment of the inhabitants, from prehistory to the first times of the Christian era. But here we start with a 16th century castle, whose ground floor room reconstitutes the medieval decor. The evolution of the social organization of the tribes, their hunting techniques and their methods of building houses are explained to us in the form of a historical reconstruction. The walk begins with Crannog, a village built on an artificial island to ensure better defence. It is interesting to note that these Bronze Age villages were sometimes inhabited until the 17th century! We continue with a cultivation field and the reconstruction of a road from 148 AD, as discovered by archaeologists: wooden rails and boards laid across it. We continue with a cooking and bathing site.

The walk then leads to a ringfort (circular fortified village): stone and thatch huts, peat fire in the middle of the square, drying of skins and loom, not forgetting the underground. Very well done! We learn that the technique of circular defensive works was later taken over by the Celts of Ireland and was still in use when the Normans started to build castles.

Also not to be missed is a triptych altarpiece which is quite extraordinary. In the central panel, Christ is crucified, with a snake in his left hand. The other cross, that of the thief, is surrounded only by a snake.