Scéal - The Hercules of Crosshaven

Scéal Trail – Creative Bandon wanted to highlight the wonderful Dúchas tales from the Bandon area. Scéál tells the story of our cultural heritage in a contemporary way, bringing the best of Irish Street Artists together to create murals inspired by the stories of Bandon from the National Folklore Collection. Zoe Tennyson and Neasa Madden O’Connor mined the National Duchas folklore database for local folk lore about Bandon. Creative Bandon worked with artists GW Joyce and Kevin O’Brien to create these vibrant, contemporary interpretations of these old folk tales, strengthening our unique connection with the town we live in.In 2021 in celebration of Culture Night and with the support and funding of Cork County Council Arts Office they commissioned David Jackson to create a reimaging of these tales and created a storytelling trail highlighting these tales. Join David on a walking tour of Bandon as he weaves a tale based on the original folklore tales gathered by Bandon children as part of the folklore collection 1937-1939, re retells the stories with a modern twist.Each of the 7 stops/episodes on a single image and story. The Hercules of Crosshaven:"As strong as Philip Oscar Sisk", is a proverb current among the inhabitants between the Bandon River and the Owenabwee in Cork, which shows that after the lapse of more than a hundred years the fame of the great Crosshaven man is still alive.A man was asked. "What was Phil Sisk? and he replied, "He was a giant. That carriage there, was no more than a daisy in a bull's mouth to him. He could do anything that motal man ever did."From the descriptions of Phil Sisk as an old man, it is easy to reason that in his prime he must have been a being of extraordinary size and bodily strength. He was born at Fennell's Bay, Crosshaven towards the close of the eighteenth century, being the youngest of six sons. It happened when he was about fifteen years old there was a hurling match coming off in the neighbourhood and naturally of course all the young Sisks were preparing to witness the contest. It was probally at this period of his life that our hero received his name of "Oscar".Many a night Phil Sisk spent with his comrades in the brakes of Fountainstown, during the Fenian Days. It was little rest they could get while the man-hunter was on the prowl. At length, one night, Oscar was surprised by the press gang. Leaping to his feet he found himself surrounded by a strong party of a man-o'-war's men. He must have fallen asleep to be taken unawers like this. What a prize they thought was in this young Hercules, but he escaped from them.There is one story told of Phil how on a certain day he was watching five or six men endeavouring, in vain, to lift a huge anchor. which was half-buried in mud by the sea shore. "You're a nice lot of boys," said Phil contemptuously descending from the quay, "It that what's the matter with you"? asked Sisk. "There then" and with a mighty heave he flung the anchor back into the soft mud, burying it almost entirely."Now you can go and get it out for yourselves and it will take long enough",and with that he walked away.It is said that in his closing years his sinews were like ropes. There are not many of the old families of Kinalea Fountainstown, that can claim kinship with the Hercules of Crosshaven. Original story can be found at:https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4921897/4899388/5183915Map of Scéal Trail can be downloaded from: https://www.bandonhistory.com/_files/ugd/190fcf_7257a182680140f48d7ee6cb65883012.pdf Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.