Blarney Stone Facts

Facts about the Blarney Stone

The Blarney Stone is located in the village of Blarney, about 5 miles (8 km) northwest of Cork, Ireland.

The Blarney Stone is a block of bluestone built into the battlements of Blarney Castle.

The Blarney Castle and Stone is one of Ireland's most popular tourist sites, attracting millions of visitors worldwide who wish to tour the castle and kiss the stone.

According to legend, kissing the stone endows the kisser with the gift of gab, eloquence, or skill at flattery.

The word Blarney has come to mean clever, flattering, or coaxing talk.

The name of the village Blarney is derived from the Irish word A blarney, which means 'the plain.'

History of the Blarney Stone

The most commonly accepted story of the stone is that, in gratitude for Irish support at the battle of Bannockburn in 1314 (a Scottish defeat of the English), Robert the Bruce gave a portion of the stone to Cormac McCarthy, King of Munster. Installed at Cormac McCarthy's stronghold, Blarney Castle, it became known as the Blarney Stone. A century later, in 1446, King Dermot McCarthy installed the stone in an enlarged castle he constructed.

During the time of Queen Elizabeth I, Dermot McCarthy, the ruler of the castle, was required to surrender his fortress to the Queen as proof of his loyalty. He said he would be delighted to do so, but something always happened at the last moment to prevent his surrender. His excuses became so frequent that the official demanding the castle in the name of the Queen became a joke at the Court. Once, when McCarthy's eloquent excuses were repeated to the Queen, she said, "Odds bodikins, more Blarney talk!" Blarney has thus come to mean 'the ability to influence and coax with fair words and soft speech without offense.'

Kissing the Blarney Stone

Kissing the Stone is, for some people, a difficult physical feat. In past times, to kiss the Stone, people were hung by their heels over the edge of the parapet. One day, a pilgrim broke from the grasp of his friends and went hurtling downward to certain death. Since that time, the Stone has been kissed by another method. First, you sit with your back towards the Stone, and then someone sits upon your legs or firmly holds your feet. Next, leaning far back and downward into the abyss while grasping the iron rails, you lower yourself until your head is even with the Stone to be kissed.

Blarney Stone Legends

How long has the custom of kissing the Blarney Stone been practiced, and how it originated is unknown. One local legend claims that an older woman, saved from drowning by a king of Munster, rewarded him with a spell that if he kissed a stone on the castle's top, he would gain a speech that would win all to him.

Concerning the power of the stone, Francis Sylvester, an Irish bard of the early nineteenth century, wrote:

There is a stone there, that whoever kisses,
Oh! He never misses to grow eloquent:
'Tis he may clamber to a lady's chamber,
Or become a member of Parliament.

Other Legends about the Blarney Stone

It was the rock that Moses struck with his staff to produce water for the Israelites during their exodus from Egypt.

Jacob used the stone as a pillow, which was brought to Ireland by the prophet Jeremiah. 

It was the Stone of Ezel, which David hid on Jonathan's advice while fleeing King Saul and may have been brought back to Ireland during the Crusades.

It was the rock pillow St. Columba of Iona used on his deathbed.