The art of dry stone wall-building is declining on farms around the country. Dry stone walls are those built in the absence of mortar or cement. They are an integral part of our countryside dotted around every corner of Ireland. Recently, I met Sunny Wieler, chair of the Dry Stone Wall Association of Ireland (DSWAI) and Nick Aitken, Scottish mastercraftsman of DSWA UK. They said that Irish dry stone walls date back to the Neolithic period (3000 BC). The Céide Fields in Co Mayo are the oldest known field systems in the world. These dry stone walls are over 5,000 years old.