Hello and welcome to the final part of our six part series on objects and relics. My name is Rachel McGee. Last week we spoke about the Mether. This week we will be looking at the different kinds of boats and ships in Irish Mythology.
Just like trees, the sea is very prominent in Irish Mythology. There are so many stories and tales involving the sea, and even many more involving boats and ships. One of the more famous ships would be the Scuabtuinne. This boat was owned by Manannán Mac Lír, the Sea God. It was said that the ship could grow to accommodate any number of people and was incredibly fast. The ship was also known for being self navigating, requiring no oars but instead the thoughts of its captain.
As we know, Cessair was one of the first people to come to Ireland. We know that she arrived on a boat along with her husband, her father and 50 other women. But did you know that Cessair actually made her own ark, built by herself from scratch?
Another interesting tale is of the Tuatha Dé Danann, and how they flew into Ireland on ships of silver. The Tuatha Dé Danann came to Ireland from the Otherworld to teach their skills of science. When they settled, they burned their boats so that they wouldn’t be tempted to return to the Otherworld. The Tuatha Dé Danann were keen rivals to the Foromorians, who were Ireland’s first settlers. They were known to be monstrous beings who come from the sea, but today they would be better known as Pirates.
One of my favourite tales involving ships would be The Voyage of Bran. Bran was the High King of Ireland, but he wasn’t much interested in the job. Once, he escaped a feast and went for a walk. Soon enough, he fell asleep to the quiet sound of music behind him. While he slept, he dreamt of a beautiful woman from the Otherworld, who sang to him about the Land of Women, where everything was pleasant and kind, and there was no treachery or grief.
When Bran woke, he found that he had a silver branch with golden apples in his hand. He didn’t understand what it meant, but decided to keep it and went back to the feast. That evening, the same woman appeared to him, but she was now visible to everyone else. The woman spoke to Bran and told him to come find her in the Land of Women.
Bran soon began building a ship. He brought with him his three foster brothers and other men. On their journey on the sea, they ran into Manannán Mac Lír on Scuabtuinne. He told them that their skiff was sailing, not through waves but through an orchard. He said that where they could see sea-horses and sea foam, he could see a grassy plain, with warriors crossing through. He told them all about the wonders of the Land Under Wave that he ruled, then took his leave.
No sooner had he left, that Bran and his gang began finding many more Islands, such as the Island of Joy. Soon enough, Bran found the Island of Women, and the woman from his dreams along with it. When they landed, they were given a big feast and no matter how much they ate, their plates always seemed full. Bran and his friends stayed on that Island for what seemed to be over a year.
Soon enough, Bran’s people began to become homesick and pestered until he relented and decided to return home. The Queen of the Island took Bran aside and told him that he could return home on his boat, but he needed to make sure not to step foot on the Island. Bran agreed to this and set off home.
When they arrived home, they saw that everything had changed. All the forests were gone and the people were small and weak. They called out and no one knew who they were. An old man came forward, and he told them of the story he was told as a young boy, the story of Bran the High King of Ireland. Bran realised that he and his men had been gone not one year, but hundreds.
Accepting this, Bran carved his voyage on stone tablets, in Ogham writing, threw them to the people and turned his boat around. They sailed off to every Island of the Otherworld. Nobody knows what else Bran and his friends got up to, but it was definitely an adventure they had.
From all these stories of boats and ships, we can see that they usually represent adventure and new experiences, such as Bran’s voyage to the Otherworld or Cessair’s discovery of Ireland. Whatever these people got up to in their adventures, their time was well spent on their ships, and we have the stories to prove it!
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