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Making a pony collar
Peter Geraghty, collar and harness maker of Shrule, Co. Galway, tacking the check lining of a pony collar through the straw stuffing. The next procedure is to turn and sew the leather edging.
Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making
Making a pony collar -
At the banker
At the banker- Frank (left) roughing out a block. Dan is dressing a whetstone with crab-apple mallet and punch. The stone rests in a ‘thraugh’ or trough.
Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh
At the banker -
Galvanised iron hoops replace the temporary tress hoops.
They help keep the churn together. Here the cooper drives them into place with a hammer and a metal-tipped driver.
Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Coopering, Coopering, Coopering, Coopering
Galvanised iron hoops replace the temporary tress hoops. -
Not every Fermanagh farm had its own forge. Here Dan and Frank make wedges and punches for use in the
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Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh
Not every Fermanagh farm had its own forge. Here Dan and Frank make wedges and punches for use in the -
The scythe is sharpened with a scythe stone, the fruit of the Mulholland labours in the quarry.
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Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh
The scythe is sharpened with a scythe stone, the fruit of the Mulholland labours in the quarry. -
To remove the charred wood from the inside of the churn the ‘in shave’ is used.
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Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Coopering, Coopering, Coopering, Coopering
To remove the charred wood from the inside of the churn the ‘in shave’ is used. -
Mary preparing a delicious currant cake for the oven.
This hard working family enjoy a couple of slices with her rich butter and a big pot of tea.
Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh
Mary preparing a delicious currant cake for the oven. -
Making a hunting bridle
With hand-rolled, three-plied, waxed thread, Jim Kelly splices the reins of a full-size hunting bridle with an eggbutt snaffle bit. He holds the work in a saddler’s clamp.
Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making
Making a hunting bridle -
The cooper with his completed dash churn for making butter.
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Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Coopering, Coopering, Coopering, Coopering
The cooper with his completed dash churn for making butter. -
No electricity meant no machinery, and a hand-milked herd.
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Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh
No electricity meant no machinery, and a hand-milked herd. -
A collar and harness maker paints a donkey straddle.
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Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making
A collar and harness maker paints a donkey straddle. -
Various items made by the cooper.
A one-cow churn and dash can be seen on the bottom left, followed by a noggin, and a piggin in front. Plant tubs can be seen also.
Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Coopering, Coopering, Coopering, Coopering
Various items made by the cooper. -
Cutting the hay with a scythe
In the long days of early summer the well-sharpened scythe cuts the hayfields with it’s ancient rhythm.
Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh
Cutting the hay with a scythe -
Detail of the work in the saddler’s clamp
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Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making
Detail of the work in the saddler’s clamp -
Working in the quarry
Frank ‘sundering’ a block with a sledgehammer and wedge in the Eshbrally quarry, a pocket of sandstone on the edge of the Erne basin.
Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh
Working in the quarry -
Breakfast time for the ducks!
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Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh
Breakfast time for the ducks! -
Peaceful moments after a long days work.
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Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh, Life and craft on a traditionally run farm in County Fermanagh
Peaceful moments after a long days work. -
A show jumping saddle made by Berneys of Kilcullen
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Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making
A show jumping saddle made by Berneys of Kilcullen -
Starting to raise the pot on the wheel.
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Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware
Starting to raise the pot on the wheel. -
Wedges of clay, ready for the potter.
These have been screened to remove larger particles and passed through the pug mill to remove air pockets and add compression.
Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware
Wedges of clay, ready for the potter. -
Blacksmith’s forge, 1843
The horseshoe surround of the blacksmith’s forge is still a familiar sight in Ireland today, but rarely a working forge. This granite-built Enniskerry forge was erected in 1843 as part of the Powerscourt estate in County Wicklow.
Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Blacksmithing, Blacksmithing, Blacksmithing, Blacksmithing
Blacksmith’s forge, 1843 -
Potters digging marl at Carley’s Bridge, Co. Wexford. Paddy Murphy prefers to dig his clay by hand to
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Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware
Potters digging marl at Carley’s Bridge, Co. Wexford. Paddy Murphy prefers to dig his clay by hand to -
Finished bridles gleam from the roof of the saddlery.
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Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making, Harness & Saddle Making
Finished bridles gleam from the roof of the saddlery. -
Cleaning scrollwork on a gate
Traditionally, blacksmiths also made and maintained gates, railings and other domestic metal items. Here, a contemporary Dublin blacksmith uses a flat-wheeled emery buff to clean up scrollwork on a gate prior to assembly.
Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Blacksmithing, Blacksmithing, Blacksmithing, Blacksmithing
Cleaning scrollwork on a gate -
Thatching tools
A. Needle used to sew sissal rope through the layers of sods or first layer of straw on a new roof. Formerly bog fir and hay (súgán) ropes were used. B. Beating pin or spurtle made from a broken hoe and a pointed chain link. Used for driving home the fletches of straw. C. Broken pitchfork prevents the bundles of straw from rolling off the roof during thatching. D. Mallet for driving home the scollops. E. Old rake used for combing out the loose straw. F. Pruning knife. G. Shears for trimming the thatch.
Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Thatching, Thatching, Thatching, Thatching
Thatching tools -
Methods of thatching
A. Hip-roofed, thrust-thatched house, South Wexford. B. Roped thatched house, Inishmore, Aran Islands. C. Roped thatched dwelling with stepped gable, Co. Mayo. Stones are used to hold the thatch down and a timber lath prevents the ropes from cutting into the thatch. D. Scollop-thatched house, Connemara. E. Full hip-roofed, scollop-thatched house with thatched chimney, Co. Galway. F. Roped thatched dwelling with typical roof rounded against the wind, Glencolmcille, Co. Donegal. G. Roped thatch house with ropes secured to spikes driven into the wall, Inis Meáin, Aran Islands.
Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Thatching, Thatching, Thatching, Thatching
Methods of thatching -
Master farrier John Boyne changes horseshoes
Master farrier John Boyne visits the Army Equitation School at McKee Barracks, Dublin. He checks the horses’ shoes and replaces worn ones. This involves removing the old shoe, cleaning, paring and rasping the hoof, matching the dimensions of the hoof to the new shoe and shaping it on the beak of the anvil. The shoe is re-seated when almost red hot, burning the hoof and achieving a perfect fit without hurting the horse. Special horseshoe nails are driven through the hoof to secure the shoe.
Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Blacksmithing, Blacksmithing, Blacksmithing, Blacksmithing
Master farrier John Boyne changes horseshoes -
St. Senan's Bell Shrine
St. Senan's Bell Shrine is now housed in the National Museum in Dublin. This casing is thought to have held St. Senan's Bell.
Image is present on following page(s): Folklore and customs
St. Senan's Bell Shrine -
Master potter, Paddy Murphy raises a large flower pot on the wheel.
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Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware
Master potter, Paddy Murphy raises a large flower pot on the wheel. -
A farrier shapes a heated horseshoe on the anvil.
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Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Blacksmithing, Blacksmithing, Blacksmithing, Blacksmithing
A farrier shapes a heated horseshoe on the anvil. -
A few of the potter’s tools.
A selection of rollers for applied decoration, a metal disc called a rib for shaping the inside and outside of a pot after it has been raised and for removing throwing rings, and a length of wire with two wooden toggles on each end for slicing free a completed pot from the wheel.
Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware
A few of the potter’s tools. -
Firing the pots in the downdraught kiln using coal as fuel.
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Copyright David Shaw-Smith
Image is present on following page(s): Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware, Coarse Ware
Firing the pots in the downdraught kiln using coal as fuel.