The next outing of the Waterford Archaeological and Historical Society is to Tintern Abbey and the Colclough Walled Gardens where we will be shown around by the very knowledgeable OPW and garden staff.
Tintern Abbey was founded by the William Marshal, Earl of Pembroke, about 1200. Legends say that when the Earl of Pembroke encountered a life-threatening storm during a sea voyage, he vowed to establish an abbey if he reached land safely. The abbey is often referred to as Tintern de Voto, or Tintern of the Vow as a result.
Following the dissolution of the monasteries the Colclough family acquired Tintern and converted the remains of the abbey into their residence, member of the Colclough family lived at Tintern until the 1950s. The walled garden was built by the Colclough family in the early 19th Century. The picturesque 2.5 acre garden is bisected by a river, crossed by five bridges, providing a centrepiece to the designed landscape. It contains separate ornamental and kitchen gardens.
The combined admission charge is €6, please note only cash is accepted.
Since it was brought to our attention that Eugene Broderick's launch of his new book Thomas Meagher: Forgotten Father of Thomas Francis Meagher was to take place at the same time as our upcoming walk and talk, we have decided to postpone the talk by one week as many people would wish to go to both events.
So instead of Thursday June 16th , our own Walk and Talk will now take place on Thursday June 23rd.
We look forward to seeing many of you on that day. All arrangements remain the same except for the date.
Meet at the bansdstand at 6.30 pm.
The lecture planned for 27 May 2022
‘A century of change – women and Irish diplomacy’
by Dr Ann Marie O’Brien has been cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances.
Apologies to all, we're looking forward to seeing you on our summer outings.
Following the AGM of 8th April 2022, the following committee was elected:
Officers:
Committee Members :
The Waterford Archaeological and Historical Society is holding the next lecture in our 2021 – 2022 programme at 8 pm on Friday, April 29th in St Patrick’s Gateway Centre, Waterford (Eircode X91 YX61) when archaeologist Dr Rebecca Boyd will deliver a talk titled ‘The Best Seat in the House? Being At Home in the Viking Age’.
Waterford is home to the Vikings, with dozens of Viking-Age houses excavated here. These are very like houses from Cork and Dublin, but one particular detail stands out. Some houses in Waterford had a special bench built in beside the hearth in the middle of the home. This hints at the presence of a ‘high seat’, the most important place to sit in a Viking house, a symbol of power and status. Using the idea of a Viking ‘high seat’, we will tour around the Viking world to see just how such displays of power and status were manifested in the Viking home.
Interior of reconstructed Viking house (Dr. Rebecca Boyd).
Rebecca’s lecture will begin in Iceland with Njal’s Saga, one of the most famous sagas of all, where the house itself is a central character. This house is a Viking longhouse, and there are many examples of these across Scandinavia and the North Atlantic. The power of the family is manifested in the house, in its size, its architecture, and its obvious displays of power, connection and wealth. We will look at longhouses with ritual feasting, of weapon displays, of imported precious glass, to see what story these houses tell. Then, we will return to Waterford, to reflect on the story and power of our ‘Viking’ houses.
Dr Rebecca Boyd has worked in Irish archaeology for more than 20 years, in commercial, research and academic settings. Rebecca’s own research focuses on the Viking world and she has written and spoken nationally and
internationally on the archaeology of Ireland’s Viking Age. Her new book Exploring Ireland’s Viking Age Towns: Houses and Homes will be published later this year. It is the first detailed look at urbanism in Ireland’s Viking Age and is the result of an Irish Research Council Postdoctoral Fellowship based in the Dept of Archaeology in
University College Cork. Rebecca currently works as Research Archaeologist for IAC on the Drumclay Crannog project, one of Ireland’s most exciting medieval settlements.
*********************FORTHCOMING LECTURE**********************
Here are details of the final talk in May:
27/05/2022 Dr Ann Marie O’Brien ‘A century of change – women and Irish diplomacy’
*********************SUMMER OUTINGS**********************
The Society is working on a programme of Summer outings which will include: 16/06/2022 The People’s Park and environs with Joe Falvey
14/07/2022 Historic Stradbally with Cian Flaherty
07/08/2022 The Siege of Waterford 1922 with James Doherty
