My Arigna Mining Experience

For as long as I can remember, my interest in Ireland has been in its ancient mythical and mystical history. I am captivated by tales of the first settlers-the white giants called the Formorians and by the goddess Dana and her t'uatha (tribes) who defeated them; by the Druids and their sacred groves rife with white oak covered in mistletoe; and their defeat, eventually, by Roman armies. I am steeped in the rich ancient history of this beautiful land once called Hibernia, now known as The Emerald Isle.

Yesterday, on my first visit to the hillside town of Arigna, as I was reading a brochure about their coal mines, I saw the words, "T'uatha De Danaan." I wondered what the connection was. I knew the legend of the ancient settlers arriving on a mountain top in the form of a mist. I didn't know, though, that I was standing on the very mountain around which the fog first appeared. I didn't know, either, that the Danaans found here the iron from which they made weapons. And I hadn't a clue what a laborious task it must have been. The Danaans had magic. The Arigna miners didn't.

An ex-miner and our tour guide, Maurice Cullen, not only took us into the side of the mountain but also shared his experiences as both a miner and the foreman for reopening the mines. It was cold underground. Cold, dark, damp. Those miners struggled with extreme conditions and the deadly results of the "mist" that enveloped them: rock dust and Black Lung. But in Arigna, there was no other work. In the late 1960s, young boys of 12 or 13 left school to work in these mines. Mines meant money...the only money available in a town not suitable for farming and agriculture.

By the end of the 45-minute tour, I felt a great respect for all the men who'd worked under these most horrific conditions to provide the coal and iron needed for fuel around the world.

I was freezing by the time the tour ended and very grateful for the warm fireplace and hot coffee in the Coffee Shop. As I talked to Maurice, I began to understand that for those miners-and the T'uatha before them-forging weapons from iron is no small matter. I was overwhelmed with respect and admiration for the miners...and for the ancient settlers.

According to legends, the mist over the hills of Ireland is a constant reminder of the presence of the magical T'uatha de Danaan. It signals their strength, even in death. The deadly rock dust that covered and killed the miners of Arigna is gone now. Only the mist of the ancients remains.

Written by Joy Davis - Summer of Travel 2007