Cairn - burial cairn

The National Monuments Service's description

This site is located on a steep S facing slope overlooking the Anascaul valley. It is comprised of a group of about 15 irregularly-shaped cairns of stone and, according to the landowner, many graves have been uncovered in the same field (Finlay 1973, 27). The largest cairn is 4.5m long N-S, 3.2m wide and .7m high. Its N end is marked by a standing stone, .53m high. Only 1 other cairn incorporates a standing stone but there are 3 to 4 isolated upright stones, no more than .22m high. Both O'Connell (NMI) and the Co. Kerry Field Club (1945, 630) noted a circle of standing stones at the site but, unless the low uprights formed part of it, this is not now evident.
It is difficult to interpret this site from a surface inspection alone. It seems unlikely that all the cairns are simply the result of field clearance though some have obviously been added to for this purpose and some do overlie the series of cultivation ridges which traverse the field N-S. The presence of the standing stones and the discovery of graves suggest that this is a burial ground and it is possible that it was associated with the rock art located in the adjacent field to S (KE045-003----).

The above description is derived from J. Cuppage, ‘Corca Dhuibhne. Dingle Peninsula archaeological survey. Ballyferriter. Oidhreacht Chorca Dhuibhne’ (1986), no. 216. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research.

Date of upload: 4 August 2013