Rena Maguire
Queen's University Belfast, Archaeology and Palaeoecology, Graduate Student
- Horse culture, Archaeology, Medieval Archaeology, Paleoanthropology, Paleopathology, Aegean Bronze Age (Bronze Age Archaeology), and 28 moreNeolithic & Chalcolithic Archaeology, Etruscan Archaeology, Iron Age Britain (Archaeology), Mesolithic/Epipalaeolithic Archaeology, Irish Archaeology, Aegean Archaeology, Mediterranean Archeology, the island of Crete, Prehistoric weapons, Archaeology of Crete, Chalcolithic Archaeology, Etruscan Funerary Art, Chalcolithic Pottery, Chalcolithic Metallurgy, Merovingian and Carolingian, Lithics, Paleoindian Research, Mesoamerican Archaeology, Human Origins Research, Early Medieval Ireland, Early Christian Ireland, Early Irish Poets, Old and Middle Irish Literature, Early Irish Politics, Pre historic Europe, Celtic Languages, Roman Britain and Gaul, Late Medieval Irish Society, Landscape Archaeology, and Iron Ageedit
- PhD candidate ' Tracing the origins of the cultural intrusion of equestrianism in Iron Age Ireland, using material goods and ritual as proxies'.edit
The origins of the Irish hobbey, a well known breed or type of horse in Medieval Europe, likely has its origins in prehistory. This requires deeper analysis via artefactual evidence across Ireland, Britain and Europe.
Research Interests:
There have been no previous exclusive studies carried out regards the Y-piece harness fitting, despite numerous specimens having been found throughout Ireland. Despite obvious signs of use and repair, they have often been considered as... more
There have been no previous exclusive studies carried out regards the Y-piece harness fitting, despite numerous specimens having been found throughout Ireland. Despite obvious signs of use and repair, they have often been considered as ceremonial or ritual pieces. A holistic approach is suggested here,including modelling the possible fit of the pieces on a horse based on the sizes of equine jaw and
breadth. The distribution and deposition patterns, comparisons with possible European analogues,combined with some knowledge of working equestrianism have been applied to offer some ideas for the use of the artefacts, with a surprising possibility of the non-Irish origins of the harness piece and
the implications of various cultural interactions throughout the Late Iron Age into the centuries preceding Christianity’s arrival in Ireland.
breadth. The distribution and deposition patterns, comparisons with possible European analogues,combined with some knowledge of working equestrianism have been applied to offer some ideas for the use of the artefacts, with a surprising possibility of the non-Irish origins of the harness piece and
the implications of various cultural interactions throughout the Late Iron Age into the centuries preceding Christianity’s arrival in Ireland.
The relief designs of the Irish Y-piece vary according to type. However, some specimens of the Raftery/Haworth 2a variant are decorated with an uncommon zoomorphic motif on their terminals. This symbol has been used on two other Northern... more
The relief designs of the Irish Y-piece vary according
to type. However, some specimens of the
Raftery/Haworth 2a variant are decorated with an uncommon
zoomorphic motif on their terminals. This
symbol has been used on two other Northern British
Iron Age objects, taking their inspiration from the
Midde Iron Age Witham Shield, found in Lincolnshire.
However, the Y-pieces appear to be the only Irish artefact
to use the same symbol. Over two centuries passed
before the motif was used on Irish metalwork. This paper
examines the interconnectivity of Britain, Ireland
and Europe through the pre-Roman period, and suggests
a possible reason for the use of the anachronistic
decoration style in Ireland of the Late Iron Age.
Die Reliefverzierungen auf irischen Y-Bügeln variieren
je nach Typ. Die Endknäufe einiger Exemplare der Variante
Raftery/Haworth 2a sind allerdings mit einem
eher ungewöhnlichen zoomorphen Motiv verziert. Das
gleiche Symbol findet sich auf zwei anderen eisenzeitlichen
Stücken aus dem Norden Britanniens, die von
dem mitteleisenzeitlichen, in Lincolnshire gefundenen
Witham-Schild inspiriert wurden. Die Y-Bügel scheinen
die einzige irische Artefaktkategorie zu sein, die
dasselbe Symbol verwendet. Mehr als zwei Jahrhunderte
vergingen, bevor sich dieses Motiv erstmals auf irischen
Metallobjekten findet. Der vorliegende Beitrag
untersucht die Verbindungen zwischen Britannien, Irland
und dem europäischen Kontinent während der
vorrömischen Eisenzeit und schlägt eine mögliche Erklärung
für die Verwendung dieses anachronistischen
Verzierungsstils in der irischen Späteisenzeit vor.
to type. However, some specimens of the
Raftery/Haworth 2a variant are decorated with an uncommon
zoomorphic motif on their terminals. This
symbol has been used on two other Northern British
Iron Age objects, taking their inspiration from the
Midde Iron Age Witham Shield, found in Lincolnshire.
However, the Y-pieces appear to be the only Irish artefact
to use the same symbol. Over two centuries passed
before the motif was used on Irish metalwork. This paper
examines the interconnectivity of Britain, Ireland
and Europe through the pre-Roman period, and suggests
a possible reason for the use of the anachronistic
decoration style in Ireland of the Late Iron Age.
Die Reliefverzierungen auf irischen Y-Bügeln variieren
je nach Typ. Die Endknäufe einiger Exemplare der Variante
Raftery/Haworth 2a sind allerdings mit einem
eher ungewöhnlichen zoomorphen Motiv verziert. Das
gleiche Symbol findet sich auf zwei anderen eisenzeitlichen
Stücken aus dem Norden Britanniens, die von
dem mitteleisenzeitlichen, in Lincolnshire gefundenen
Witham-Schild inspiriert wurden. Die Y-Bügel scheinen
die einzige irische Artefaktkategorie zu sein, die
dasselbe Symbol verwendet. Mehr als zwei Jahrhunderte
vergingen, bevor sich dieses Motiv erstmals auf irischen
Metallobjekten findet. Der vorliegende Beitrag
untersucht die Verbindungen zwischen Britannien, Irland
und dem europäischen Kontinent während der
vorrömischen Eisenzeit und schlägt eine mögliche Erklärung
für die Verwendung dieses anachronistischen
Verzierungsstils in der irischen Späteisenzeit vor.
