Curraghmore - stone head

This thought provoking monument stands on an exposed south facing slope overlooking the river Clodiagh and the stately ancestral mansion of Curraghmore House.

Here, in a special place, a stone head, not known if sculptured or naturally formed, has been seemingly fixed to a 1.5 metres tall tapered standing stone. The head measures just short of 0.5 metres in height and is almost  entirely covered by lichen which it makes it difficult to discern the facial features that have been previously recorded. Where it came from is uncertain but possibly it may have had associations with the nearby church.

The human-like effigy, which is thought to represent a severed head, is known locally as “Mother Brown”. Whilst the head seems to have been an addition to the overall monument, the standing stone itself appears to have been long a part of this ancient place, where its lonely silhouetted figure breaks the bleak hillside horizon. Adding to the mystery is its location which is near to what looks like a complete ring of kerbstones some 40 metres in diameter, now populated by a coppice of tall trees.

When you first walk out onto this lonely hillside your senses are instantly touched by the location and feel of the place which exudes a remarkable air of ancientness and mystery and where you could easily be tempted to use the cliché “unchanged for thousands of years”.

Directions: From Portlaw take the road for Carrick on Suir (via Curraghmore) driving with wall of the estate on your left.

After 1.75 km on this narrow road you will come to the old church of Clonagam which is just off the road on your left. Here you can drive in and park. Enter the field bedside  the church by a V stile in the wall. To your left and about 400metres away you will see the unmistakable monument on the horizon.

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