Aclochán(pluralclocháin) orbeehive hutis adry-stone hutwith acorbelledroof, commonly associated with the south-western Irish seaboard. The precise construction date of most of these structures is unknown with the buildings belonging to a long-established Celtic tradition, though there is at present no direct evidence to date the surviving examples beforec. 700CE.[1]Some associated with religious sites may bepre-Romanesque,some consider that the most fully intact structures date after the 12th century or later.[2][3]It is where monks lived.
Form
editThey are most commonly round beehive huts, but rectangular plans are known as well. It has been suggested that the rectangular footprints date to a later era. Some clochán are not completely built of stone and may have possessed a thatched roof.[1]The walls are very thick, up to 1.5 metres (4 ft 11 in). Sometimes several clochans are joined by their walls.[3]
Locations
editClochán are mainly found in the Southwest ofIreland,for example atSkellig Michael,Church Island offBeginish Island,Glanfahan,FahanandReaskin theDingle PeninsulaofCounty Kerry.Many occur in religious contexts such as used by the monks followingSaint Patrick;moreover, his successors carried on the architectural tradition in the Scottish island ofIonaand eventually viaAidanto the eastern English islands ofFarneandHoly Island.There are others inringforts(such asLeacanabuaile,County Kerry) that are commonly interpreted as secular dwellings. Elaborate dry walled stone churches like theGallarus Oratorymay derive from the clochán. The clochán has been described in the 7th to 8th-centurylaw Críth Gablach.[1]Beehive huts are also found inWest Penwith,Cornwall.[4][5]
Popular culture
editParts of the 2017 filmStar Wars: The Last Jediwere filmed using the beehive huts on the island ofSkellig Michael.[6][7]Because of the restrictions regarding filming on the island, a set of replica beehive huts were also built in 2016 at Ceann Sibéal, nearBallyferriter,on theDingle Peninsula.[8][9]
See also
edit- Beehive house
- Christian monasticism
- ChysausterRomano-British settlement in southwest Britain
- Cleit
- Dry stone
- Hermits
- Vernacular architecture
Further reading
edit- Olsen, B. (2003)Sacred Places North America,Santa Cruz, California: CCC Publishing
- Edwards, Nancy (1990)The Archaeology of Early Medieval Ireland,London: Batsford
- Aalen, F. H. A. (1964)Clochans as Transhumance Dwellings in the Dingle Peninsula, Co. Kerry
- Henry, Françoise(1948)Early Irish Monasteries, Boat-Shaped Oratories and Beehive Huts
- Henry, Françoise (1956/1957)Early Monasteries, Beehive Huts, and Dry-Stone Houses in the Neighbourhood of Caherciveen and Waterville (Co. Kerry)
- Peter Harbison(1970), "How old is Gallarus oratory? A reappraisal of its role in early Irish architecture",Medieval Archeology,Vol. XIV, pp. 34–59
References
edit- ^abc"Irish 'Beehive' Huts".Omnium Sanctorum Hiberniae. 14 November 2012.Retrieved16 February2019.
- ^Laing, Lloyd Robert (2006).The Archaeology of Celtic Britain And Ireland: C. Ad 400 - 1200.Cambridge University Press. p. 222.ISBN9780521838627.
- ^ab"Clocháin or 'Beehive' Houses".GoKerry.ie.Retrieved16 February2019.
- ^"Carn Euny Fogou and Beehive Hut".Cornish Ancient Sites Protection Network.Retrieved27 October2024.
- ^Jenkins, Palden."Iron Age Settlements - Ancient Penwith | Cornwall".ancientpenwith.org.Retrieved27 October2024.
- ^Partick Nugent (9 December 2017)."Experience the Force: A guide to the Star Wars magic in Kerry".Irish Times.Retrieved16 February2019.
- ^Alex Weinburg (2 January 2018)."The Real-World Architecture of Luke Skywalker's Jedi Hideaway".Atlas Obscura.
The ancient Jedi shelter where Luke Skywalker resides is a very terrestrial building type called a clochán, a primitive stone dwelling that can still be found on Skellig Michael. These structures, also called beehive huts, were built by the ascetic Christian monks who first settled the island in the 6th or 7th century.
- ^"Ceann Sibéal - Star Wars Film Location for 'The Last Jedi'".DinglePeninsula.ie. Archived fromthe originalon 17 February 2019.Retrieved16 February2019.
A collection of beehive-shaped huts was built to reproduce the beehive huts of Skellig Micheal. Construction workers built a road across local farmland to bring the trucks, scaffolding, lighting, trailers, food, props and people up to the closed set. Lucasfilm later thanked locals for their support and hospitality.
- ^Noel Baker (9 April 2016)."Big buzz as Star Wars recreates beehive huts at Ceann Sibéal in Kerry".Irish Examiner.Retrieved16 February2019.
External links
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