Kinahan — On Irish Arenaceous Rocks. 50& 



INTEODUCTION. 



A study of the history of the Irish sandstone rocks is interesting, 

 they seemingly having been the favourites with the early builders. 

 The primitive inhabitants of the country appear nearly invariably 

 to have utilized the hardest stone nearest at hand, so that in many 

 places they used the granite erratics ; but in such places where 

 there were| both granite and sandstone erratics, they seem to have 

 chosen the latter ; while, if the rock had to be quarried, it was 

 nearly always the sandstone that was selected. 



After stone with mortar was introduced, at first sandstone 

 still seems to have had the preference in the districts in which it 

 occurred, except in a few places where there were good slate-rocks ; 

 as these, in certain localities, were extensively used, and are still 

 used, for architectural purposes. This, however, will be more par- 

 ticularly mentioned in a subsequent paper on Slates and Clays. It 

 may, however, be here mentioned that some of these slate-rocks, 

 although producing good and durable work, were not at the same 

 time capable of giving the fine and embellished cut -work to be 

 found in the granite, limestone, and sandstone structures. 



Later on, as has been pointed out by Kane, Wilkinson, and 

 others, the sandstone was superseded by limestone, the latter rock 

 having been often carried for great distances into the sandstone 

 areas. This probably was due in a great measure to the workmen, 

 who had a preference for the stone to which they were accustomed. 

 Various examples in modern time in support of such a supposition 

 are on record. When the Scotch workmen were building Muckross 

 Abbey, Killarney, about forty years ago, they ignored the ex- 

 cellent limestone of the neighbourhood, and imported sandstone 

 from Chester, that being the nearest place where they could get 

 sandstone similar to that with which they were accustomed ; and 

 in different places, the engineers of the Ballast Board, when 

 building lighthouses, have brought Dublin granite to the dif- 

 ferent localities. This may be seen, besides, in various other 

 places, at the West Sound into Bearhaven, Co. Cork — a locality 

 famous for its good sandstone. Kylemore Castle, Co. Gralway, 

 was contracted to be faced with granite, and although the locality 



