Of fairies and folklore: the power of crystals in nineteenth-century rural Ireland

Folk beliefs in fairies and their power over natural and culturally produced objects, in particular quartz crystals, are common in modern Ireland and have existed in the fabric of Irish culture deep into Ireland’s prehistory. Irish scholars agree that quartz crystals are given powers of healing, as well as to curse and ward off curses. The work presented here aims to explain the meaning of eight quartz crystals found on two neighbouring sites in County Cork, Ireland. The data comes from two sites (Collins Site I and II) located in adjacent farm fields in Lackaghane, County Cork, and together span the years from ca. 1780 to 1915.