School: Garbh Fhearáin (Garrafrauns) (roll number 13155)
- Location:
- Garrafrauns, Co. Galway
- Teacher: Seán Ó Fionnagáin
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0030, Page 555
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- XML “Linen”
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- Long ago in this locality a good deal of flax was grown. The flax was pulled by hand when ripe.
Then it was hit against a stone to separate the grain from the stalk.
Next the flax was made into sheaves and left steeping in a bog hole for eight or ten days to loosed the fibres.
This was known as "retting". It was next exposed to the sun to dry. When perfectly dry it was "scutched". When the scutching was completed it was "heckled". Then the fibres were softened by placing them on a flagstone and beating them with a "beetle". It was then spun into threads which were afterwards woven into linen by the local weaver.
Sheets, tablecloths and towels were made from coarse linen while fine linen was sold cheaply.
The soft substance remaining after weaving is known as "tow"
- Collector
- Micheál Breathnach
- Gender
- Male
