The Lake-Dwellings of Europe: Being the Rhind Lectures in Archæology for 1888Munro, Robert
History
The Lake-Dwellings of Europe: Being the Rhind Lectures in Archæology for 1888
Munro, Robert
Lake-dwellers and lake-dwellings -- Bibliography; Lake-dwellers and lake-dwellings -- Europe
Amongst the more recently discovered lake-dwellings were one at
Lisnacroghera, near Broughshane, and two in Lough Mourne, both
localities being in county Antrim. The former came into notice some
six years ago in consequence of the discovery in a peat bog of some
remarkable iron swords, with bronze sheaths, together with other
military weapons. The bog in which these objects were found occupies
the site of a former lake, which, till recently, retained so much
water as to prevent the working of the peat for fuel. To remedy this
the outlet was deepened, and so new or undisturbed portions of the
bog were brought within reach of the peat-cutters. The antiquities
were found from time to time in a circumscribed area, within a small
plot belonging to one of the neighbouring farmers. When attention was
first directed to the locality, and the workers questioned as to the
circumstances in which the relics came to light, it appears that
some kind of wooden structure was encountered, which, however, had
been entirely removed before being seen by anyone competent to form
an opinion as to its nature. In August, 1866, I visited the locality,
and closely questioned the farmer about this woodwork, but failed to
elicit any definite information. He was quite clear, however, about
the existence of stakes and irregularly disposed beams and brushwood,
which at the time he thought little about. From his description,
and some remnants of oak beams, some showing the usual mortises,
there can, I think, be little doubt that it was a crannog, but of no
great dimensions. Close to where the peat had been cut there is an
undisturbed structure of stones just cropping through the turf, which
may yet turn out to have some relationship with the crannog. As to
the relics, there is no record of their association with the crannog
beyond the fact of their being found in its vicinity. Canon Grainger,
who has taken much interest in this find, has secured for his private
museum a large number of the relics from Lisnacroghera, but he fears
that, since the crannog has become famous, he has occasionally been
imposed upon by having presented to him, as coming from it, objects
which in reality had been found elsewhere. This, in my opinion,
partly explains the presence of such incongruous objects as are now
to be seen in the Canon's collection. Among these are especially some
arrow-heads and scrapers of flint which cannot be distinguished from
analogous objects picked up on the neighbouring fields. Besides the
weapons with bronze mountings, there is in short an assortment of
remains which might be classed as belonging to all ages--a stone celt,
rubbers, flint arrow-heads and scrapers, down to an iron reaping-hook,
a hedge-cutter's knife, and a portion of an old gunlock.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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