This article is from page 8 of the 2014-07-08 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 8 JPG
HUMAN remains discovered on Mutton Island just off Quilty may belong to one of island’s final inhabitants or even a sailor shipwrecked during the Spanish Armada almost 500 years ago.
Gardaí investigated the human remains discovered on the tiny island last Wednesday have confirmed that there are no suspicious circumstances surrounding the discovery and that the remains are historic.
The alarm was raised last Wednesday when a local man discovered the skull and bones on the uninhabited island. Members of the Gardaí conducted a preliminary investigation of the schene on Thursday and a Garda forensic investigation team and an archeologist from the Archaeological Survey of Ireland examined the human remain last Friday, and determined that the bones were historic and not part on any modern day crime.
It is understood that the storms of January and February of this year may have unearthed the remains on the eastern side of the island. The remains were discovered at the foot of a cliff dozens of metres above sea level and could have remained their undisturbed for hundreds of years until this year’s heavy storms.
It is almost 100 years since the last permanent inhabitants left Mutton Island. The cliff where the bones were discovered is understood to be located close to the last pocket of human settlement on the island.
A number of ships from the illfated Spanish Armada are known to have sank in the area. It has long been suspected that a number of Spanish sailors from the Armada were buried on Mutton Island but no remains have previously been found.
Over the years, Mutton Island has attracted the attention of many people. John Lennon of the Beatles once attempted to purchase the small island as his west of Ireland getaway but purchased Dorinish Island off Mayo instead.