By Mary O’Donnell

On a mild, overcast February Sunday we gathered as our ancestors had done for centuries at an ancient Christian site in the heart of the scenic Glen of Aherlow under the shadow of the Galtee Mountains.
There were no signposts to direct us as we made our way along a narrow mountain road to this isolated spot where the Anglo-Saxon saint, Berrihert chose to build his church.

Little is known about him other than that he was a monk who came to Ireland from Northumbria in the 7th century. His name is linked to other monastic sites mostly in Co Cork. No evidence of his church survives, leading to the belief that it may have been a wooden structure.

St. Berrihert’s feast day falls on the 18th February and is celebrated at the site to this day usually on the Sunday nearest the date.
We climbed over a stile into a field where the Kyle revealed itself – ‘Kyle’ meaning a church. Here a circular wall built in the 1940s was studded with Early Medieval cross slabs that up to then lay scattered all around. The purpose of the wall was to protect these slabs from cattle and other animals that grazed the surrounding fields.

The cross slabs are mostly composed of red sandstone which is the predominant rock type in the Galtees. A few of the slabs are decorated with a simple cross while the majority are more highly decorated. Placed inside the enclosure is a large circular Bullaun stone with a hollow in the centre.

An ancient oak on the perimeter was festooned with an array of coloured rags, rosary beads and children’s soft toys. Nearby a cillín – a children’s burial place with crude stones marking the burials – was a stark reminder of the darkness of the past. Spontaneously, we formed a circle and the local priest led prayers for those present and for the unbaptised babies, reminding us of the pain, secrecy and grief of the manner of their burial.

We then squelched our way across a field where fences blazed with yellow furze. As we entered another field through a wooden gate, crossing a small bridge we saw hidden in a grove of woodland a well, more a small pool or pond, its spring bubbling at the surface.

We had reached the holy well of St. Berrihert – a place of healing and light where pilgrims over the centuries had come to be cured of different ailments especially eye complaints.
The priest’s words were poignant – he said this was a place to pray for the living, a place of light.

Overhanging trees, beech and oak cast shadows on the water while some had an array of hangings including cups and mugs.

Following an ancient ritual, a mug of water from the well was passed around by a man who leaned down to the bubbling pool while quite a number of those present filled plastic containers with the clear water.
The Kyle itself is early Medieval but the well dates back to pre-Christian times. Some people collected pebbles from a small stream flowing from the pool. It was customary in the past for emigrants to take pebbles with them from this sacred place.

A pilgrim path encircles the pool where people complete three rounds, reciting prayers while walking slowly.

We carefully picked our way back through marshy ground. Reluctant to leave this place we paused at the Kyle to examine the large flat topped stone placed inside the enclosure. On top of this stone was a collection of small statues, coins and toys.

This stone with a hollow in the centre is a Bullaun stone, known locally as a cursing stone. In the hollow is an oval shaped smooth stone, this is the cursing stone. When turned anti clockwise in the morning it supposedly has the effect of invoking a curse on another person.

A further example is to be found further west in the Glen of Aherlow placed at the side of the road, surrounded by a protective low stone wall. This one, showing signs of erosion, has five deep hollows and is also known locally as a cursing stone. The original function of these stones is not known, they may have been used to grind corn or herbs.
In this sacred place associated with St. Berrihert there is a sense of timelessness, a connection with the past and a feeling of peace where the only sounds are of birdsong and the distant lowing of animals – a magical place indeed. ÷