Bullaun stone (present location) in Donickmore

When recorded on 31 January 1984 this bullaun stone was lying in the N side of a field fence (original location record CO066-012002). It was described as an irregular block with a circular hollow (diam. 0.3m; D 0.1m) centrally placed on upper surface. Five fulachtaí fia (CO066-012001-, CO066-012003-, CO066-012004-, CO066-012005-, CO066-012006-) were recorded in the field to the S. This bullaun stone was subsequently moved to the the garden of Donickmore House where it has been used as a garden feature. The measurements of the stone were recorded in 2002 as 0.75m x 0.55m x 0.3m. Another smaller bullaun stone (CO055-066----) was found in the same field, which is c. 600m to the E of Donickmore House, and it is now stored in the house. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Cork. Volume 2: East and South Cork' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1994). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of revision: 17 December 2009 Revised by: Mary Tunney

Likely dating to the early Christian period, bullaun stones were often used for ritual purposes, such as anointing or as holy water basins, and are associated with local saints or folklore. This example may have had a spiritual or ceremonial function in its original context.