Irish Artifacts
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In Savage Sun several Irish artifacts were discovered held in a trophy room of Laurence J. Karabatos. They include the following:
The Stone of Destiny, also known as the Stone of Scorn. Said to contain the dreams of the Danaan.
(Image copyright John boyd Brent http://www.aboutscotland.com)
The history behind the stone:
The existence of
Scotland's most potent symbol of nationhood, the Stone of Destiny, or in the
Gaelic, the Fatal Stone. long precedes the creation of England or Scotland as
nation states. It is said to be Jacob's pillow at Bethel on which the patriarch
dreamed visions of angels ascending and descending a great ladder into Heaven.
Its whereabouts in
Biblical times remain a mystery. But what is known is that some 500 years after
the crucifixion of Christ, Jacob's Pillow had found its way to Egypt into the
possession of a Pharaoh's daughter, Scota.
When she was given in
marriage to a Greek prince, Gaythelus, she brought it with her on their journey
via Sicily and Spain to Ireland, where the couple settled among Erse tribes in
what is now Co. Antrim, Northern Ireland.
The Stone passed from
Scota to Fergus, son of Erc, of the Dal Riatans, a vigorous warrior tribe who
had already crossed the sea to conquer and settle the Argyll coastline of the
land that was to be Scotland (it was named after Scota). Legend has it that St.
Patrick of Ireland, himself, blessed the Stone, ordaining that wherever it
rested, there would rule the lineage of Erc. Whatever the truth of that claim,
it was most certainly a revered and sacred object.
The Stone, having crossed
the Irish Sea, had no permanent home in the statelets then comprising Scotland.
Over many decades it was kept safe from the raids of Vikings, passing through
Dalriada and later the Pictish kingdom.
As a sacred object, the
Stone was absorbed into the ritual of coronation ceremonies. At the holy island
of Iona and at Dunstaffnage, near Oban, Dalriadic monarchs were stood upon it in
open assembly when being crowned. The ceremonies required them to don royal
robes and hear their lineage declaimed in Gaelic, generation by generation, from
the days of Noah up through the ages.
In 850 A.D. in the reign
of Kenneth MacAlpin, the first king to unite the Pictish and Scottish kingdoms,
and create the land of Scotland, the Stone of Destiny gained a permanent resting
place at the Abbey of Scone. There for 400 years, it remained as the symbol of
Scotland's nationhood and was used in Scottish coronations until Edward 1 of
England, known as the Hammer of the Scots, removed it by right of conquest in
1296.
He had it fitted with
rings on either end and removed to London as a final ignominy heaped upon a
shattered country to destroy its spirit - being well aware that it was foretold
in ancient prophecy that wherever the Stone should rest, there would reign a
King of the Scots.
At the same time as he
took the Stone of Destiny, Edward broke the other symbol of the country's
nationhood, the Great Seal of Scotland, declaring coarsely, "A man does
good business when he rids himself of a turd."
The Stone was kept in
Westminster Abbey, London, where England's monarchs were crowned. A special
niche for it was built below the coronation chair. Since then every British King
and Queen has been crowned over it.
By Treaty of Northampton
in 1328, England actually agreed to return the Stone to Scotland but then
refused to hand it over after rioting mobs in London, egged on by the clergy,
took to the streets in protest.
Only once did the Stone
ever cross the border back to Scotland, before being released into the care of
the nation on the 700th anniversary of its removal. On Christmas Day, 1950, it
was smuggled from the abbey by a group of Scottish students in a romantic
escapade that made headline news round the world.
As one of the most
intensive searches in UK history was launched they drove back to Scotland with
it hidden in the boot (trunk) of their car.
For 107 days the
authorities searched high and low for the Stone before the students left it at
its spiritual home, the ruins of Arbroath Abbey, for them to find.
When the students took the
Stone from Westminster Abbey, it was dropped and it fractured. While it was
being spirited round Scotland, a stonemason was secretly recruited to mend it.
He reunited the segments using internal metal struts.
During its period of
liberation, several duplicate copies were made and controversy still rages today
on whether the Stone now resting in Edinburgh Castle is the genuine article.
In fact, the controversy
goes back a lot further than that. It is theorised that the original Stone of
Destiny had many elaborate carvings on it and that the monks of Scone, as a
precaution, hid the real stone, substituting a lump of common sandstone for
Edward to take 700 years ago.
Real or false, the Stone
of Destiny is regarded by UK Governments as a national treasure and they take
its protection extremely seriously. When it was returned to Scotland, the Stone
of Destiny was brought back by road under heavy military protection. Full-scale
security measures were introduced along the route, with each area being declared
"sterile" before the Stone was allowed to proceed on its journey.
Today it
has a place of honour within the Throne Room of Edinburgh Castle. But it still
remains the property of the Crown and will be required to be returned to
Westminster for any future coronations.
Information
obtained from the following link:
More data provided via Mark Ellis:
the Stone of Destiny (the Lia Fail)was one of the treasures of the
Danaan, given to the Celts. The high kings of ancient Ireland were crowned upon it and it confirmed the election of a rightful monarch by making a roaring sound as he took his place on it. The stone stayed at Tara for centuries and was sent to Scotland in the 6th century for the crowning of Fergus the Great who asked his brother, Murtagh mac Erc, then the King of Ireland for the loan of it. Since of course the Scots and the Irish are the same folk (Celts), nobody in Ireland made much of a deal about its return. It never came back to Ireland and was stolen in 1297 by Edward Longshanks, the king from Braveheart. So, even though the English recently returned it to Scotland, the Scots should actually send it back to Ireland.The Sword of Lugh The Longarm, a weapon said to be invincible.
King Nuada of the Tuatha DeDanann had a fabulous sword that could cut through anything. He used it in battle against the vile and wretched FirBolg. He used it again against the Fomorians, who were the "sea demons" led by Balor of the Evil Eye.
The Spear of Lugh The Longarm
Lugh of the Long Arm was an expert at lots of things, and especially at using a spear. His spear was trained so well that it would kill enemies in battle all by itself. The spear was so fierce that it had to be drugged with poppy juice to calm it down after a battle.
A grail stone, or the Cauldron of Dagda, often confused with the holy Grail.
There are plenty of sacred cups, plates and cauldrons in Irish mythology. The god-king Dagda had a cauldron that was always full of food (which is good, because he loved to eat). There was also a cauldron full of good ideas, and another that could bring dead warriors back to life so that they could continue fighting.
Information gathered from: http://www.knowyourfate.com/storytellers/magicalitems.html
Numerous legends surround the lore of the cauldron. In Celtic mythology, the Dagda is said to have possessed the Undry cauldron which issued out food according to a man's merit, and Bran the Blessed was given the Cauldron of Rebirth which had the ability to resurrect slain warriors. The Celtic god Cernunnos was reborn after having been torn apart and boiled in a cauldron.
The Babylonian goddess Siris stirred the mead of regeneration in the cauldron of the heavens. In Norse mythology, Odhin drank magical blood from a cauldron to obtain wisdom; and according to Greek mythos, Medea had the ability to restore a person's youth by using a cauldron.
Information gathered from: http://www.paganlore.com/cauldron.html
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Created on 09/13/00
Updated on 09/14/00