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The Faddan More Psalter was not just dropped in a pond--the midland bogs were fully formed by 500 CE. Conservators believe it was deliberately buried...but why? Birr and other area monasteries were raided by Vikings in the 800s, and books would have been among their most valuable possessions. Perhaps it was the librarian-monk of Birr who saved the Psalter.
As barbarian hordes approach, he stuffs the Psalter in a leather satchel and makes a dash for it, scrabbling across the bog and stumbling through puddles. In desperation he quickly hacks away clumps of sod with a knife and jams the book in. Maybe he was unable to find the hiding place later...or maybe he didn't live long enough to retrieve it. The Irish Peat Board (called Bord na Móna) produces a poster called "Under Your Feet" which instructs workers and residents what to do if they encounter an unusual item while cutting peat or digging: "Mark its location. Leave it in position. Keep it wet. Don't try to clean it. Avoid further cutting in the area." Peat is still harvested, dried and burned as fuel as it has been for centuries in Ireland. Although there is a growing movement to preserve the midland bogs, industrial peat harvesting cuts 5 million metric tons of this non-renewable resource a year.
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