Aghade Holed Stone
Aghade Holed Stone or Cloghaphoill is a large holed stone and a national monument located two miles south of Tullow in Aghade, County Carlow, Ireland.
Description
The holed stone is granite, measures approximately 2.4 x 1.56 x 0.46 metres, weighs close to 5 tonnes, and has a hole about in diameter near the top. It is similar in size to the "Holestone" found in County Antrim at Doagh.History and legend
Archaeologists believe that the stone was originally a door to a megalithic tomb. The hole may have permitted the offering of food or other objects to the dead.The 14th-century Book of Ballymote offers a story where Niall of the Nine Hostages ties Eochaid, son of Énnae Cennsalach mac Labhradh to the Aghade Holed Stone and sends nine men to kill him:
Up to the 18th century it was common for sick children to be passed through the hole, in the belief that this would cure them or to ensure good health.