Turoe stone, Iron Age granite artifact in Bullaun, Ireland.
The Turoe Stone is a 1.2-metre granite stone whose upper half is carved in relief with continuous curvilinear La Tène designs, including concentric spirals cut about three centimetres deep; the lower half is left plain. It stands on a concrete base ringed by a metal cattle grill, and as of 2025 it was held at an Office of Public Works depot in Athenry for conservation.
The Turoe Stone stood for centuries at a lios, or fairy fort, about 3 km from Bullaun before being moved to Turoe Farm in the late 19th century, destroying its original provenance. George Coffey argued in a 1904 Royal Irish Academy paper that it had been moved in the 1850s from the rath of Feerwore. Excavations at that hilltop site in Turoe townland showed an open late-BC site later enclosed.
The stone displays Celtic La Tène patterns carved into its surface, showing the artistic style that people used here during the Iron Age. These designs represent one of the few examples of such detailed metalwork-inspired patterns preserved in stone form in Ireland.
The stone normally stands on the lawn in front of Turoe House, 6 km north of Loughrea off the R350, set in a concrete base within a metal cattle grill. As of 2025 it had been taken to an Office of Public Works depot in Athenry for conservation, so check locally before travelling.
The stone was lent to the ROSC 67 exhibition in Dublin in 1967; the loan prompted Niall Montgomery of the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland to resign from the National Monuments Advisory Council. Since a 2014 removal for cleaning it has stayed away from Bullaun, held at an Office of Public Works depot in Athenry as of 2025.
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