Logboat discoveries in Ireland could date back to time of Saint Patrick

The National Monuments Service has confirmed that two logboats, which could date from medieval times, have been found in the River Boyne (Irish: An Bhóinn or Abhainn na Bóinne). They were seen by citizen archaeologist Anthony Murphy using a drone, along with an an already identified third boat, on a stretch of the river close to the town centre of Drogheda (Irish: Droichead Átha). In a statement the National Monuments Service at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage said it "can confirm that of the three logboats imaged by Mr Murphy, two are new discoveries."

Closer examination of the boats would be required to confirm their age but it is believed they are medieval or post-medieval. The already identified boat has been assessed as possibly aged to a date range of 400AD to 1650AD. Reacting to the official confirmation, Mr Murphy said on a report by Irish broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ) : "It's incredible to think that the Boyne logboats have been sitting in the bed of the river for centuries, and perhaps millennia, waiting for that serendipitous day when a combination of low tide, sparse rainfall and the wonderful technology of drones to be seen again." Speculating on a the date of the boats he said: "If they're from the earlier part of the date range, these boats could have been sitting in the Boyne when Saint Patrick came up the river from the estuary to Slane". 

Dr Stephen Davis of the UCD School of Archaeology said the newly identified logboats "show yet again how significant the Boyne and the Brú na Bóinne World Heritage Sites are, both nationally and internationally." It has been confirmed by the The National Monuments Service in Ireland that including the two logboats found by Mr Murphy, it now has records of the discovery of 14 logboats in the Boyne at various stages over the last 200 years.

Link:  To article on Raidió Teilifís Éireann.

Image: Logboat discoveries courtesy of RTÉ.