A history of Ireland through the eyes of its oldest woman — Máirín Hughes

Máirín Hughes in a model T Ford the same age as herself – 108 years old. She went around Dublin's Phoenix Park in it last September. Picture: Paul Kerr

Last September, the oldest woman in Ireland climbed into the back of a model T Ford the same age as herself — 108 years old — and took a turn around the Phoenix Park in Dublin, providing, as she went, a personal history of the State.

There’s a fascinating account of it on the Irish Life and Lore podcast in which Máirín Hughes, who died aged 109 on Tuesday, ensures that the details of her singular life are preserved. And what a life.