The Tara brooch is rich in cultural meaning and is one of the most important artifacts that are on display in the National Museum of Ireland. Dating back to around 700AD, the history of the Tara Brooch is enlightening, the piece being one of the earliest of the Christian era of Celtic Irish art.
The brooch is intricately designed with abstract decoration on a seven inch long pin of silver gilt or tin. The decoration not only covers the front portion of the piece, but also winds around the back to display some if the finest and delicate offerings of Celtic Irish art ever. This design is commonly known as Celtic knot work and there are many hours of craftsmanship in the brooch.
If you take a look at the white brass object with intricate sliver, copper, amber, gold and glass all intertwined, then you can see just how advanced the Irish goldsmith was so early on in history. The brooch was found along the sea shore of Ireland in 1850, and although the name, brooch of Tara suggests a connection with the hills of Tara and the mythology of the Kings of Ireland, it actually has no real connection.
Found in Laytown in County Meath by a peasant lady or her sons, although it is commonly read that the brooch was washed up on shore, the reality is that it may have been found inland. If the brooch had have been found inland then the owner of the said piece of land could have made a claim on the object, and it is for this precise reason that the exact location will actually never be known.
As the story continues and unfolds, although it must be remembered that it may only be fictional hear say, the mother took the brooch to an iron monger, but he showed no signs of interest, disregarding the treasure. From here it is said that the woman sold the jewel to a watchmaker for eighteen pence.
As a peasant, the woman was happy with her profit, but the watchmaker quickly discovered that the brooch was actually valuable and was an intricate design of what he then thought was silver and gold. Happy with his findings, the watchmaker then travelled to Dublin where he sold on the brooch Waterhouse Jewellers for twelve old Irish Punts, or pounds as we commonly know them. George Waterhouse in Dublin saw instantly the wealth of such a charm and went on to give it the name we know it by today, the Tara brooch.
The Tara Brooch on display at the National Museum of Ireland
The jeweller was very much aware of just how precious his finding was and exhibited the piece that by this time was known also as the Royal Tara brooch. Named like the hills of Tara, the jewel has never had any proven connection with the area of Ireland, only that the name sounded distinguished and set the jewel apart from cheap imitations.
After many exhibitions, the Tara brooch really had gained huge fame since the days it was said to have been washed up in the Irish Sea, and the jeweller made the decision to sell on the brooch to the Royal Irish Academy, this time for a huge profit at two hundred pounds. Since this time, many experts have studied the brooch and its intricate design, and the general consensus of opinion is that it indeed dates back to around the eight century.
Experts have been able to come up with this date when studying the history of the Tara brooch, as the design of the jewel with its intricacy has been noted as a phase in Irish Celtic art that indeed disappeared shortly after this time. The jewel is of course made famous by the gold filigree that is found on top of what is now known to be a tin base.
The Tara brooch is therefore not actually a jewel of hugely expensive material, rather a representation of early Celtic art and the intricacy of a design that has been mimicked millions of times since. The history of the Tara brooch not only fascinated the Celts or the Irish, but is indeed a story that is well known all over the globe by lovers of the finest things in Celtic art.
