School: Raharney (B.)
- Location:
- Raharney, Co. Westmeath
- Teacher: S. Ó Conmhidhe
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0727, Page 042
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- XML School: Raharney (B.)
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- XML “Old Crafts - Candle Making”
- XML “Old Crafts - Bóráns as Fuel”
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On this page
- James Dargan aged 84 told me a story about candle making. Rushes were got and peeled. The white parts of the rush were taken out and dipped in grease. They used cowdungs for candle sticks. The cowdung was brought in on a piece of a board and one end of the rush candle was stuck into it.
On twelfth night a big cowdung would be brought in and twelve candles stuck in it. A name was put on each candle and the one that would be gone out first that person would die first. The names given were the names of the 12 apostles and each person chose one.
- Up to about 50 years ago cowdungs were used in many districks as fuel. Poor people in this place collected turned and dried the cowdungs in the fields. Then they were brought home and burned, and they were called bóráns.
