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Craggaunowen is an archaeological open-air museum in eastern County Clare, Ireland. It is named for the 16th-century castle which is one of its main components.
Craggaunowen is located 10 km east of Quin village. The name Craggaunowen derives from its Irish name Creagán Eoghain (Owen's little rocky hill). The site is operated by Shannon Heritage.
Steele had the castle rebuilt as a summer house in the 1820s and he used it, and the turret on the hill opposite, as places of recreation. His initials can be seen on one of the quoin-stones to the right outside. Following his death in 1848 the lands were divided, Cullane going to one branch of his family, Craggaunowen to his niece Maria Studdert. Eventually, having passed through the hands of his descendants, the castle and grounds were acquired by the "Irish Land Commission". Much of the poor quality land was given over to forestry and the castle itself was allowed to fall into disrepair.
By the time of the First Ordnance Survey in the 1840s, the castle was in ruins again. In the mid-19th century, the castle, herder's house and 96 acres were reported in the possession of a Reverend William Ashworth, who held them from a Caswell (a member of a family from County Clare just north of Limerick).
Craggaunowen Castle was bought and restored by antiquarian John Hunt in the 1960s. Hunt added an extension to the ground floor, which for a while housed part of his collection of antiquities. The collection was later moved to the University of Limerick and as of 2022 is held at the Hunt Museum in the city of Limerick.
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