The Sword in the Stone: previously unrecognised archaeological evidence of ceremonies of the later Iron Age and early medieval period

Abstract

Published in G. Cooney et al. (eds), Relics of Old Decency: archaeological studies in later prehistory. Festschrift for Barry Raftery (Wordwell, Dublin, 2009), 425-36, this is a proof copy of an introduction to on-going research on a series of narrow grooves cut into a range of stone artefacts and monuments. These grooves are found, for example, on the decorated Mullaghmast Stone (now in the National Museum of Ireland), on the market cross at Kells, Co. Meath, and on several ogham stones. It is suggested that such grooves reflect a ritual in which a sword blade was drawn across a special stone to imbue the weapon with some of the stone's magical potency. This may be the explanation for the famous Arthurian motif of 'the sword in the stone' where the young Arthur has his royal destiny confirmed when he draws the sword of kingship from a stone.