Country Ireland Irish Grid Reference L725405 Local time Thursday 9:47 AM | County County Galway Elevation 20 m Province Connacht | |
Website roundstone-connemara.com Weather 8°C, Wind NE at 19 km/h, 62% Humidity | ||
Roundstone (Irish: Cloch na Rón, meaning "seal's rock") is a village on the west coast of Ireland, in the Connemara region of County Galway. The town of Clifden is nearby to the north.
Contents
- Map of Roundstone Co Galway Ireland
- Transport
- Culture
- Twin village
- Archaeological discovery
- Drowning Tragedy During War of Independence
- Cinema
- References
Map of Roundstone, Co. Galway, Ireland
The anglicised name is usually considered an error on the part of the British colonial Ordnance Survey which translated the village name; while Cloch certainly means "stone" or "rock", Rón means "seal", not "round". Still, the names Cloch na Rón and Roundstone may be totally independent. The bay is referred to as Round-stone Haven as early as 1684 (Roderick O'Flaherty), and the rock after which it is named stands like a marker at the entrance and is strikingly round.
Transport
The Bus Éireann Clifden to Galway route serves Roundstone three days a week during the winter and daily during the summer. The village is connected to the rest of the national road network via a regional road, the R341. This connects it to the N59.
Culture
Roundstone is known as a home for creativity and the arts. For many years some of the most important figures in Irish Art have painted there, including Paul Henry, Jack B. Yeats, Gerard Dillon and Nano Reid. The Roundstone Arts Week celebrates youth and environment on an annual basis. The local Summerfest, is held in July. Traditional Irish Nights are held weekly throughout July and August and offers music, song and dance from the Connemara area.
Twin village
Roundstone is twinned with the village of Noyelles-sous-Lens (a suburb of Lens, Pas-de-Calais) in France.
Archaeological discovery
In 1998 Sean Gorham of Inishnee, Roundstone, County Galway, was engaged in turf-cutting in Roundstone Bog "when he noticed what appeared to be a series of flat stones laid at regular intervals ... Believing them to be the remains of an ancient trackway, Mr. Gorham left the stones undisturbed, and through the good offices of Martin O'Malley, Roundstone, and Michael Gibbons, Clifden, his discovery was brought to the attention of the National Museum of Ireland."
Gorham's find was located in the townland of Derrycunlagh. Investigation revealed that earlier turf-cutters had removed part of the trackway but its two extant stretches determine its route. The trackway appeared to date from the early Bronze Age, while the field wall may have been of an earlier date.
In an article of 2002, it was stated that "Thanks are due to the late Sean Gorham, whose keen eye and interest save the trackway from destruction and brought it to scientific attention."
Drowning Tragedy During War of Independence
On February 6th, 1921, during the Irish War of Independence, 4 Volunteers of the Old IRA were making their way by boat from Carna to Roundstone for a Battalion meeting, when they were caught by a violent storm and drowned on the shore of Inishlaken Island.
Cinema
Films shot in Roundstone