An Chailleach Bhéara (The Hag of Beara)
The Hag of Beara is one of the oldest mythological beings associated with Ireland and in particular Kilcatherine, where she mostly lived. She was considered a goddess of sovereignity giving the king the right to rule the land. Legend says she had seven periods of youth, one after the other and every man who had lived with her came to die of old age.
She considered the arrival of Naomh (Saint) Caitarin, who preached Christianity in Kilcatherine, and sorrounding districts, as a threath to her powers. One day after gathering seafood, along the shore of Whiddy Island, the hag returned home to Kilcatherine to find the saint asleep on the bare hillock. She approched him quietly, grabbed his prayer book, and ran off. A cripple who lived nearby saw what happened and shouted at Naomh Caitiarin, who then woke up and saw the hag running off.
The saint ran after her, caught up with her in Ard na Caill, and recoveed his prayer book. He then turned her into a grey pillar stone with her back to the hill and her fact to the sea. There she remains to this day.
