School: Carrickerry, Árd-achadh (roll number 11281)

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1. The Hidden Treasure of Athacluigín

   

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   Mick Ahern of Knockfinisk is a labourer of a about forty years old. It is he who related the following story to me a few months ago. His grandfather (who is now dead) told it to him when he was about eighty two years. Both Mick Ahern and his grandfather were reared in Knockfinisk.

   One night a crowd of men who believed in getting rich quickly without working were sitting round a blazing fire in the west of Carrickerry. They were talking and joking with the farmer in whose house they (when) were when one of them said he had dreamt on three consecutive nights that there was a great pot of gold buried in a secret spot in Ballyloughane beside a bridge known as Athacluigín. They consulted together for a while and at length decided to go home and get the necessary implements to go and dig for the treasure.
   Having procured them they went to Athacluigín and commenced to dig. They had dug about a year deep when presently a great swarm of bees burst forth from the pit and began to sting the gold-seekers who became terrified save two. The holder of the lantern let it fall and it went out. Then the others fled but the two courageous men remained. One of them held the lantern while the other dug on (while) and soon the bees flew away. They were expecting to see the great flat stone which was said to (was said) cover the pot but instead they beheld a great flock of birds that fluttered their wings

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   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. genre
      1. belief (~391)
         1. folk belief (~2,535)
            1. treasure legends (~7,411)

   Language

   English

   Informant

   Mick Ahern

   Gender

   Male

   Age

   40

   Occupation

   Labourer

   Address

   Knockfinnisk, Co. Limerick