School: Maoilinn (B.), Áth Treasna
- Location:
- Meelin, Co. Cork
- Teacher: Diarmuid de Brún
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0350, Page 138
Image and data © National Folklore Collection, UCD.
See copyright details.
DownloadOpen data
Available under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Note: We will soon deprecate our XML Application Programming Interface and a new, comprehensive JSON API will be made available. Keep an eye on our website for further details.
On this page
- Basket Making. Baskets of different sizes and shapes were extensively made here in former times. Those baskets were generally used for turf a large one with a wide mouth for bringing the turf out of the 'bog-hole' to the cart or for bringing a good amount of turf from the reek into the house. This basket had two straps or canvas handles attached to one side so that the person could take the basket on his back and keep a grip on it with both hands. Those baskets were commonly used up to about twenty years ago but they are scarcely to be seen atal now.
[Small sketch of basket and sgíth]
The sgíth basket was of an entirely different shape and was used for carrying a much smaller amount than the big basket. Children used use it for bringing in turf or for picking small potatoes into it when the garden would be digging.
Both baskets were light and used be made of twigs or light sallies. Strong twigs were made as a frame work and the lighter and more pliable twigs were then plaited through the stronger ones until the basket or sgíth was made.
Denis O'Connor, Meelin, Co Cork and Frank Keane(continues on next page)
