Caherconnell International Furnace Festival 2022
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About the event
Iron smelters from across the globe will be smelting iron ore into iron. Jens Jørgen Olesen from Denmark will be running workshops on building furnaces and smelting iron from Irish bog iron.
Sat 27 Aug: Mainly smelting, some forging:
a ‘battery’ of 7-8 small furnaces producing blooms of c. 4kg in two hours, run staggered so a bloom comes out every 45min or so.
One or two furnaces to smelt the local siderite nodules (one of these furnaces will be preserved as a future attraction at Caherconnell Fort)
Sun 28 Aug: mainly forging, some smelting
Production by blacksmiths of replicas of iron objects recovered during the excavations at Caherconnell
Thu – Sun: continuous free guided tours + Open Air Museum
Sat-Sun: guided tours by Dr Michelle Comber (NUIG)
Where is it taking place?
Caherconnell Fort.
Caherconnell,
Ballydoora,
Carran,
Clare,
V95 YK31
When is it taking place?
August 27th & 28th, 10am to 5pm
Who is it suitable for?
All ages
Accessibility
Caherconnell Fort is wheelchair accessible with toilets and café on site
Do you need to book?
No, booking is not required.
About the organiser
Smelters form all over the globe will gather with Irish Blacksmiths in Caherconnell stone fort to make iron as they did hundreds of years ago, using Irish iron ore and charcoal smelted in hand made clay furnaces. Blacksmiths will then forge small items such as arrow heads and belt buckles and iron tokens. All the iron has been hand dug in bogs and collected from around the Burren. All the furnaces and fires will be fueled with charcoal made from sustainable Irish forest. Simple elements brought together by skilled craft workers to form long lasting durable pieces of craft.
Contact details
If you have any questions about this event, get in touch with colm@bushyparkironworks.com
+353 86 2400418
Membership
Artist Blacksmith Association of North America.
UK Blacksmiths Guild
Disclaimer
All August Craft Month events are run independently by the event organisers. For questions regarding this event please contact the event organiser directly.