Lying off the coast of County Kerry, the rugged Great Blasket island was home to a small Irish-speaking community for over 300 years but was officially abandoned in 1953. The islanders had a rich musical and storytelling tradition which was captured in books written or dictated by them. These are now considered to be of international significance.
This extraordinary legacy is celebrated in the Blasket Centre, located at Dún Chaoin on the tip of the Dingle Peninsula on the Wild Atlantic Way. Following a significant investment, the centre has re-opened with a new visitor experience that provides an imaginative re-telling of the islanders’ story and celebrates their unique literary achievements.
With interactive displays, artefacts, audio-visual presentations and artworks, the exhibition takes you into the heart of the island community and offers the opportunity to engage with the history, language and culture of Great Blasket.
The exhibition reveals the harshness of island life, which centred on fishing and depended completely on the community’s support for one another. And it explains how scholars, who visited Great Blasket to learn Irish and collect folklore, encouraged the islanders to write their life stories in their native tongue.
The three best known island books are An Toileánach (The Islandman) by Tomás Ó Criomhthain, Peig by Peig Sayers and Fiche Blian ag Fás (Twenty Years Agrowing) by Muiris Ó Súilleabháin. They are considered to be classics of modern Gaelic literature.
Outside, the centre has a viewing platform and walkway that affords spectacular views over the Blasket Islands. The centre has been designated as a Wild Atlantic Way Signature Discovery Point, one of just 16 along the dramatic 2,500km route that stretches from counties Donegal to Cork.
For an authentic experience of the beautiful but isolated landscape in which the islanders lived, you can also visit the Great Blasket Island by boat. Crossings are from April to October and depend on the weather.
Stroll through the old, abandoned village and step into the past. Look out for dolphins and whales off the coast and take in the breath-taking beauty of one of the most westerly islands in Europe, and a place of exceptional cultural and historical significance.
