The farmers creating one of the most intensive farming systems in Europe thousands of years ago were mostly livestock farmers, arable crops played some role but animal husbandry was key to the society of ancient Ireland at that time.
Today they still provide all of those functions and also as a habitat for wildflowers and wildlife.
So if you are wondering why are there stone walls in Ireland, this is why - and it has always been this way.
It's no wonder that stone walls have been synonymous with strength and resilience for centuries.
Stone walls have also always provided a fascination for artists, photographers and writers who see the beauty in these simple but intricate constructions.
Truly traditional stone walls are built using nothing more than local stone, so local that it isn't quarried but collected from the fields that the very walls will enclose, using no cement or mortar. There is a traditional skill to building the walls, and often depending on how windy the locale is, larger gaps for air to pass through leaves the construction stable and solid.
