Ringfort - cashel

The National Monuments Service's description

In rough pasture on the N-facing slope of a N-S ridge, on the E side of the Caher valley. There is a good view of Galway Bay to the NE and from NW to S. Hachured on the 1842 ed. of the OS 6-inch map; indicated and named ‘Cahermacun’ on the 1916 ed. In 1901, Westropp (1901, 278) described it as an ‘irregular caher … greatly gapped’. A poorly preserved and partially overgrown rectangular cashel (int. dims. 27m E-W; 25m N-S) with rounded corners. The E, S and W sides are reduced to stony spreads and later walls overlie them on the E and W sides. The S side is heavily overgrown. Some outer wall-facing is visible at S (H 0.8m) and W (H 0.4m). The N side (Wth 1m) is the best preserved part of the wall but its W half is heavily overgrown. Its outer wall-facing survives to a height of 1.2m. However, no clear trace of the inner wall-facing is evident. The S wall is on higher ground and there is a drop (H c. 2m) from its base to the interior of the cashel, which slopes to the N. Thickening of the stone spread in the SE and SW corners potentially indicates the sites of structures. A cairn is located in the centre of the interior.

Compiled by: Olive Alcock and Ros Ó Maoldúin

Date of upload: 24 January 2022

References

Westropp, T.J 1901 Prehistoric remains in north-western Clare part II. Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland 31, 273-91.