Rocks and Stones

I’m interested in the idea that all rocks fall. They all tumble at one point or another, and come to rest somewhere. Sometimes sitting, sometimes standing.

Of those which stand, some of those stand by design. A human hand placed them. Others stand by pure chance, and I’m intrigued by the idea that I can’t always tell the difference.

I’m fascinated by the idea that rocks show their history on their face. The lines, the weathering, the lumps and indentations, all speak of an entire history of assaults by nature. An ancient history, unknowable beyond the surface evidence. We can see, and know, the effects of time and exposure, but what else?

The first image above shows a stone which makes up one part of a stone row at the edge of a field down the road from Knockboy Church, Co. Waterford.

The second image shows a cairn constructed by the Mass Rock in Slievenamuck, quite close to where I live now. The Mass Rock is an isolated spot in the hills - with a makeshift stone altar - where locals went to attend mass in secret during the Penal Laws, which outlawed Catholic worship.