Next weekend, the Culture and Crafts Fair at Craggaunowen will immerse visitors in Ireland’s ancient traditions through craft demonstrations, live music and storytelling, all set against the backdrop of the medieval castle, open-air museum and surrounding woodlands.
Ireland’s traditional crafts and trades will be on display at the 2024 Culture and Crafts Fair in Craggaunowen next weekend: Saturday, 13 July and Sunday, 14 July, from 11am to 5pm each day. Visitors to the popular east Clare heritage attraction will have the chance to interact with craftspeople, artists, storytellers, musicians and dancers from across the county.
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The fair will see Jack Pinson, a Clare-based craftsman specializing in traditional timberwork and crafting longbows, demonstrate the use of a traditional pole lathe. On Sunday, Michael Foudy from Ruan will showcase the age-old skill of basket-making and demonstrate how pliable materials like willow and hazel were used in the past to make baskets for carrying fuel, gathering food and catching fish.
The event will also feature Craggaunowen’s resident blacksmith, Uinseann, forging jewellery and sharing his knowledge of the history and mythology of metalworking in Ireland, while the resident craftsman, Arno, will transform animal hide and wood into ceremonial drums.
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The late medieval Craggaunowen Castle and surrounding woodland will host demonstrations and talks by local artists and craft producers specializing in leatherworking, glassworking, candle-making, soap-making, jewellery-making, knitting and crocheting, paper quilling and much more.
From 1pm to 5pm each day on the castle green, attendees can enjoy live traditional music by local musicians and set dancing performances, as well as storytelling and puppet shows for the younger visitors.
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Commenting on the upcoming event, Pauline Lenihan, site manager at Craggaunowen, said:
“We are excited to bring together some of Clare’s finest musicians, crafts and trades people and artists for what will truly be a celebration of the history, heritage and ancient traditions of Co. Clare. We promise a fun-filled and educational day for people of all ages.”
Visit the Craggaunowen website to book your tickets to the Culture and Crafts Fair (standard rates apply).
What is Craggaunowen?
Craggaunowen Castle, a tower house built around 1550 by John MacSioda MacNamara, became uninhabitable by the 17th century. In 1811, “Honest” Tom Steele, a supporter of Daniel O’Connell, inherited the tower house and rebuilt it as a summer residence. However, after changing hands several more times, Craggaunowen Castle again fell into disrepair.
In the 1960s, John Hunt restored the tower house, adding an extension to the ground floor to house part of his antiquities collection; this collection now resides in the Hunt Museum in Limerick city. Today, Craggaunowen Castle is open to visitors during the summer months.
Also at Craggaunowen are full-sized replicas of several interesting archaeological monuments: a crannóg (artificial island lake dwelling), a ringfort (early medieval farmstead), a souterrain (underground passage), a fulacht fia (cooking site) and a togher (Iron Age trackway). John Hunt initiated the construction of the crannóg and ringfort, and eventually gifted the entire open-air museum to the Irish people.
The “Brendan Boat”, built by the late explorer Tim Severin, is also on display at Craggaunowen. In the 1970s, Severin sailed this vessel from Ireland to Newfoundland, recreating the voyage of St Brendan the Navigator, who is reputed to have discovered America nine centuries before Christopher Columbus.
Earlier this year, Clare County Council announced plans to invest €1 million into enhancing this beloved visitor attraction. Repair works to the crannóg and huts, as well as the connecting bridge across the lake, are scheduled for completion within the year. A new playground inspired by St Brendan’s voyage will be built, and the site will develop an audio-visual experience to complement the “Brendan Boat”. In addition, upgrades will be made to the public car park, toilet facilities, fences, pathways and wayfinding signage.
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