Story Archaeology

The first of a new Series of Story Archaeology podcast conversations on mythology and its 'Stories in the Landscape'.

Join Chris and Daniel, archaeologist and manager of the Rathcroghan Visitor Centre as they discuss Cruachan Aí,the royal home of of Medb, Ailill and the Finnbhennach, the white bull of Connacht. Yet,this famous setting forms only one level in the rich archaeological 'Stories in the Landscape' of Roscommon.

Take a 'virtual visit' to the Visitor Centre

Find out about the The Táin March Festival

Discover the Roscommon Schools' online Oenach projects

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Archive episodes connected to this conversation.

Series 6 'Circling the Táin'

Series 3: Epsodes 3 to 7 in particular

Coming soon. A conversation with Professor Ralph Kenna.

Join the Story archaeologists as they attempt to catch up and answer some of the questions that you have been asking. This Q&A session covers the topic of fír flathemon , 'The truth of the king' and delves into the complexities of the text, Lebor Gabála Érenn, the 'Book of the Taking of Ireland'. We also return to the strange phenomenon of the Morrigan's Mono-horse.

This audio story is one of the many stories that circle around the great Táin Bó Cúailnge , The cattle raid of Cooley. It is not a well known story but it is important as it is really the 'origin' story for the whole cycle. It is also a great tale and explains a lot!

The story has been included because it emphasises the importance of the storyteller-poets and can be enjoyed in conjunction with the become an Irish Hero Poet activity sheets. Have fun together.

Or go to the podcast episode about the Two Poet Pig keepers, The Quarrel of the Two Swineherds.

Return to the links page for further audio and video stories and activities.

Bricriu's Feast

his story has everything It has a king who gets someone else to solve his own problems. It has warriors who are determined to have adventures and show off to the MAX,

It has giants, water monsters, fearsome cats from an Otherworld cave and more.

There is also a VERY BIG AXE! The story comes from a very old story called Fled Bricrenn.  I haven’t told it all  but I have included all the best bits!

Because it is a very long story I have divided it into four parts, each around fifteen minutes long. It is great fun and quite an adventure. The full story is most suitable for the 9 to 13 year old range. (Click on the podcast link below.

Watch the animation, part of the Bricriu story. story, The Cats of Cruachan. (suitible for all age groups).

Return to the main links page for more audio and video story choices.

This time last year, I was struggling with what felt like an impossible task. I was asked to come up with a scripted screenplay for the Rathcroghan Visitor Centre, Roscommon. This short animation was commissioned by Nollaig Feeney, the Roscommon Heritage Officer and was a direct outcome of the Schools workshops undertaken in the county in support of the annual Tain March event. (I will be writing about this event in a subsequent post.)

I was keen to tell part of the Fled Bricrenn story. There was a problem in that Bricriu's Feast is a long and complex text full of convolutions and duplication. It took Story Archaeology four full episodes to tell the story. I had created a telling adapting it for a modern audience and much loved by Primary aged children but it would be a huge challenge to condense it to under tn minutes. Eventually, I settled for telling only the section of the story that concerned Medb and Rathcroghan.

As I am sure you are aware, and we soon discovered, animation is costly to produce and basic flash was all that the budget allowed for simple 2D graphics. I think that Pink Kong did a great job and we are pleased with the results. We had hope to make some of the children's poetry integral to the story telling but the script had to be kept tight. We managed to include a short selection along with the credits. The film was completed last October but was released this May at the culmination of the 2019 Tain March event.

Our regular listeners will recognise that Medh is played by our own Isolde. We had fun getting the wheelchair into the recording booth but all went well eventually. I have now produced a full written and audio version of Bricriu's Feast for a family audience and this will be published shortly.

Medb, Queen of Connacht, is rightly renowned in Irish legend and mythology, as a strong and influential woman leader. Her centre of power, Cruachan Ai, is still recognised as one of the most important Iron-age sites in Ireland.  Medb lead her people in her own name and by her own right. She was a strong woman in a society largely dominated by strong men. She fought hard to maintain the high status of her rule throughout her long life but the choices she made, as always happens, had consequences.

This audio-article endeavours to discover some something of Medb the woman, as she can be found in the old Irish texts? What choices did she have to make to protect her land and people and how did she come to terms with the consequences of those choices? It is an interesting story.

This audio article is based on a presentation given for an on-line conference  hosted by Vyvianne Armstrong. This conference is entitled Medb, Intoxication and Initiation. This is one of a series of upcoming conferences. If you would like to find out more, contact Vyviane at  [email protected] 

Music: A Trip to Emain by Gian Costello

Join Chris Thompson as she takes a story-teller's view of the old Irish stories. Who told them and why were they so memorable.   In this audio article, Chris celebrates the old stories and explores the challenges in telling them today.

For those who have asked me for ideas and advice on story telling generally, I am going to be devoting a  section of my upcoming Patreon site 'Sinann's Well' to this subject.

References and Links

Oral Tradition Theory

While there are a great many experts who can illuminate this eclectic discipline. I have found the writing of John Miles Foley comprehensive and enjoyably helpful. I also appreciate the manner in which he takes account of the revitalizing effect of the internet on oral story telling. Professor Foley was the founder of the academic journal Oral Tradition and the Center for Studies in Oral Tradition at the University of Missouri, where he was Curators' Professor of Classical Studies and English .

I have added a link to the UK Amazon page listing a few a selection of his works but they tend to be somewhat difficult to find.  Our American listeners, I  suspect, would have less of a problem. His  books do offer a comprehensive and modern approach to Oral Tradition Theory.

For those of you who enjoy audio books.I would  highly recommend,  The Modern Scholar: Singers and Tales:  Oral Tradition and the Roots of Literature  By: Professor Michael D. C. Drout.

Miichael Drout, who studied under Professor Foley,  Professor of English and Director of the Center for the Study of the Medieval at . He is an author  and specialising in Anglo Saxon,  medieval literature, fantasy and science fiction.

This is an enjoyable and easy-to-follow introduction to the  history and development of Oral Tradition Theory and offers a fascinating insight into how story telling functions within  diverse  societies. I listen to the book  over and over again, just because I enjoy it. It is not too long, either.

Other links

The Ark before Noah by Irving Finkel

Nothing to do with Oral Tradition theory, or, indeed, with the early Irish tales, I am still going to recommend this book in connection with the current topic. This tells how a story, now known, only from the careful translation of long-lost Cuneiform clay tablets,  has continued to retain so much information,. Irving Finkel, does not just plot the meandering, ever changing and adapting, course of a story, still known and loved today,  but he throws a fascinating light on the world where this story may have been first told. He even identifies performative elements, still recognisable.

I love this book.

Music: The Wandering Harper by Gian Costello

The Dagda with his cauldron of abundance, from which none leave unsatisfied, epitomises the deep and ancient yearning we  feel for mid-winter indulgence and  good company.  It may be that the cauldron had more to offer than just a solid meal. Join Chris, from the Story Archaeologists, as she dips into this extravagant cooking pot.

This audio article is based on a piece published in the new book Harp, Club and Cauldron: A harvest of Knowledge published by Eel and Otter Press. It is an entrancing and informative anthology, well worth adding to your physical or digital library and the Story Archaeologists were proud to be asked to offer three articles to the book.

I will be adding further picture articles connected to The Dagda's Cauldron article: .(Images of Gobekli Tepe and information on recent Iron age Feasting finds), shortly.

 Harp, Club and Cauldron A harvest of Knowledge:

Find on Amazon.com

Find on Amazon.co.uk

Addendum: I haven't checked but I think I referred to the German archaeologist who was responsible for the dig at Gobekli Tepe, for so many years, as 'George'  rather than 'Klaus' Schmidt. I can't imagine why I said that. Klaus Schmidt sadly died in 2014.

Music: “Tam Lin” by Gian Castello

We regularly receive questions from listeners and readers. We try to answer them as soon as we can but many are well worth exploring in more detail. Here we discuss just three. Firstly there is the problem of 'coir', a word that we use regularly in episodes to express an important but complex concept. Another term we frequently use is  'poet' to cover a number of similar roles in early Irish society. In this discussion, Isolde gets to explain about  the many grades of poet that existed, File, Bards, and even Bramble Hounds! The third discussion concerns the thorny issue of who were the Celts, anyway. Join the Story Archaeologist  as they enjoy teasing out a few possible answers.

Isolde_recording

What did happen to Midir? Why does he appear in so few stories? It is a mystery. A murder mystery? Could be. Certainly Midir's  reputation was usurped and he, himself, seems to have been, effectively,  'disappeared!

For a more 'in depth' examination of this topic go to:

In Search of Midir 

or In Search of Manannán

This short recording was originally made for an on-line conference hosted by Vyviane Armstrong. The weekend conference was entitled  "Tuatha Dé Danann. Our Tribe and Theirs". Some of you may have already heard this presentation but, for our other listeners, I thought I would upload the recording. It is good to get Isolde back 'on the mike' and your donations have helped her to find new equipment that allow her to record lying down. We hope to record the promised, Q &A very soon.

This was the  seventh conference in the series  'A Year With The Gods. There was  a very interesting and varied programme and Isolde and I were delighted to be involved.' If you would like to know more more about Vviane's future events, do  contact her for more details.

Vyviane ArmstrongLand Sea Sky [email protected]