Mourne Stone Masons - Traditional N Irish Working Scenes

A chance encounter with these masons whilst admiring their work on a house in North Down led to this film. It was very kind of them to explain their work and their tools as they erected several beautiful stone walls with a variety of local stone. These folk are from the Mournes area where their preferred stone is quarried and evident all across that area in churches, houses, farmland walls and public buildings going back hundreds of years. They are very much in demand now as genuine traditional building crafts, with their well respected longevity, make a welcome return to house architecture on the island. As well as the walls under construction, we've featured historic buildings with the same stone, and Newcastle, a seaside town and gateway to the Mourne Mountains from the East Coast. Just ten minutes away on the coast road is Dundrum Village with it's sprawling hilltop Norman stone castle built by invader knight John De Courcy.

[@binflynn1]

Lovely that he knows the different names of stone

[@cm9748]

Love it . I wish these guys were in Canada so they could teach me.

[@Irelandscapes]

Apparently the most important thing is to get the best chisel for breaking and shaping the stone - one with a tungsten head. There will likely be another stonework film this Summer, so keep an eye on the channel.