Traditional Thatching Demonstration

This Heritage Week, join thatcher Adrian Garvey as he demonstrates the skills and materials required to perform this traditional craft. In this engaging demonstration, you will learn the story behind thatching, the various forms used and how styles differed depending on climate and weather conditions. Demonstrations will take place from the 18th to the 22nd August at 10am, 12pm, 2.30pm and 4pm, lasting approximately 30 minutes.

Thatched roofs are a common sight throughout Bunratty Folk Park. Did you know that thatch is the ideal roofing material as it is cool in the summer and warm in the winter! In exposed regions of the Atlantic seaboard, the thatch is held down by ropes to prevent it from being damaged by strong gales. The reed for the thatch was not only collected by thatchers but also by fisherman in the nearby rivers including the River Ratty, River Shannon, Owenogarney at Sixmilebridge and along the estuary developing close links to Bunratty Castle and Folk Park.