Darragh finds ancient stone
IN March 2020, 15-year-old Darragh McDaniel was helping his father Anthony McDaniel dig a drain in a field in Drumcliffe when he spotted an unusual stone.
“It had a hole in one end, and it was noticeably lightweight and red in colour,” recalls Darragh.
Unsure as to what the object might be, he brought it to local Archaeologist, Tamlyn McHugh for identification.
On recognising the importance of the object, Tamlyn alerted the National Museum of Ireland.
“It’s not every day that you are presented with such a marvellous find. The object is quite small, and it could easily have been missed were it not for Darragh spotting it,” Tamlyn said.
The stone pendant is thought to be a prehistoric miniature stone tool which was worn around the neck and used to smoothen the surface of other objects like polished stone axes. An alternative interpretation is that the pendant was a Bronze Age archer’s stonee wrist bracer that at some point broke and was subsequently repurposed or reshaped into a pendant.
Bracers were worn on the inside of the wrist to protect an archer when releasing the arrow. Examples have been discovered with high profile prehistoric burials in Britain including the Amesbury archer. Further research will be conducted by the experts in the National Museum of Ireland to determine the origin of the stone material, the date, and the function of the object.
Following the lifting of restrictions on travel Dr. Nessa O’Connor, Archaeologist and Assistant Keeper of Irish Antiqui- ties at the National Museum of Ireland, visited Sligo to meet with Darragh and his family, to thank him for the discovery and to bring the object into the care of the National Museum in Kildare Street, Dublin.
Speaking in Drumcliffe, during the presentation of the pendant to the National Museum of Irelandland, Cllr.Cllr Donal Gilroy,Gilroy Leas Cathaoirleach of Sligo County Council and Chair of Sligo Heritage Forum, congratulated Darragh on his discovery. “I am delighted to see an example of how young people have a keen eye and interest in our heritage. Our future and our past are in safe hands”.
Nessa O’Connor also congratulated Darragh and thanked all those involved in the discovery and reporting of the pendant. “The National Museum of Ireland of Ireland was delighted to hear of Darragh’s fascinating and unusual find. I was really pleased to have a chance to meet Darragh and his family on Tuesday last and to see where the stone pendant was found.
“This is a great example of good citizenship and the way in which a single small find can add to what is known about the archaeology and settlement of one locality in prehistoric times. Darragh did very well and was so observant to spot this tiny artefact in the disturbed soil. We would also like to thank Tamlyn McHugh who was instrumental in passing on news of the discovery from the McDaniel family to the National Museum”.