Folklore

The Irish are known storytellers. Myths and legends are captured in Irish stories, poetry and music. Some instances of folklore include the Children of Lir and the Ninth Wave. Our range of pieces inspired by these legends are symbolic.

Children of Lir

One of Ireland’s most famous legends, the Children of Lir is a bittersweet story. The Celtic story is one of love and loss. Many around the world recognize not just the story but the themes of the legend.

According to the tale, King Lir was an ancient ruler of Ireland. He had four children, a girl and three boys.

King Lir remarried after the children’s mother died, to a woman named Aoife. Aoife was jealous of the King’s attention for his children so she cast a spell on the children which transformed them to four swans. For nine hundred years the children were forced to live as swans, dividing their sentences between three lakes around Ireland. King Lir banished Aoife, in his grief, but could not save his children.

So the King moved to the lakeside and died near his children. They still had their voices so they would speak sweetly to the King and this is how he learnt of Aoife’s crime. After nine hundred years and the King’s death, the spell broke and the children returned to their human forms. However, they did not live and immediately went to join their parents in heaven.

Ninth Wave

The ancient Celts believed that the Ninth Wave was the ocean boundary between the human world and the fairy realm. The legend goes that there was a mythical island off the West Coast of Ireland. This island was only visible to sailors who had survived the Ninth Wave, or were able to transverse the world between mortality and magic. It is commonly held that the magic island beyond the veil of the Ninth Wave would have brought peace to the families of sailors who lost their lives at sea. It was a magical realm.

Legends of Tomorrow

The stories detailed above are as relevant today as they were centuries ago. The characters and challenges of the legends serve as reminders of the strength of the spirit