Knock Iveagh is a hill near Rathfriland, County Down, Northern Ireland. It is topped by an ancient burial cairn and was part of a longue durée ritual landscape, with important multi-period artefacts having been found within the area. In 2017 this State Monument featured heavily in both local and British news media due to the erection of a wind turbine on the summit endangering the site. This caused a groundswell of support and protest from the community, led by Veronica Kelly, Anne Harper and Arlene Pattison, as Friends of Knock Iveagh. This robust and emotive community initiative reminded many Irish heritage specialists and archaeologists of the importance of the site from both an artefactual and landscape perspective, as it reflects the long, shadowy prehistory of Ireland and its turbulent medieval past. This volume includes modern re-examination of the Neolithic pottery of the cairn, for the first time since 1954; the Iron Age Ardbrin Horns are examined in a practical way to highlight the ritual aspect of the landscape, while a top Irish palynologist explains the landscape changes and how it affected the creation of the area. The topography is examined using drone technology to complement this. Language and townland names illustrate the landscape as a constantly reworked intangible heritage feature, reflecting the changing languages and occupations of the inhabitants. The importance of objects, landscape, language and folkways to the sense of place, identity and wellbeing is also discussed, as a form of decolonising the past and building an authentic community heritage for the future. This holistic approach to demonstrating the sites importance is very much a template for community archaeology groups in all parts of the world.
Foreword, by Rev. Alan Harper, O.B.E
Chronology of Irish archaeology
“This Land Is Made for You and Me”: Knock Iveagh as a Community Memoryscape
Rena Maguire
Maps, Muck and Music; A Personal Introduction to the Campaign to Save Knock Iveagh
Veronica Kelly, Anne Harper and Arlene Pattison
Geology and Topography of Knock Iveagh, County Down
Alastair Ruffell
An Environmental History of the Knock Iveagh Area
Gill Plunkett, Helen Essell, Lisa Coyle Mcclung and David M Brown
Uí Eachach Coba: The Relevance of Placenames in the Understanding of Landscape History
Ciaran Mac Murchaidh
The Ardbrin Trumpet
Simon O’dwyer
A Re-Evaluation of the Neolithic and Early Bronze Age Ceramics from Pat Collins’ 1954 Excavation at Knock Iveagh, County Down
Cormac Mcsparron
Recovering Place: Cultivating an Ethic of Care for Ancient Sites and Monuments
Claire Nolan
Notes on Contributors
Acknowledgements
Veronica Kelly, Arlene Pattison and Anne Harper are the heart of the Save Knock Iveagh campaign. All locals, they have deep personal connections to the site and are passionate about its preservation and heritage.
Rena Maguire is an archaeologist, and Visiting Research Fellow in Queen’s University Belfast, specialising in Iron Age European archaeology, especially weaponry and equestrianism.
