Sites and Monuments Record · Ireland
Castle - motte
Mountnugent Lower, County Kilkenny, Ireland
The record
- Townland
- Mountnugent Lower
- County
- Kilkenny
- Country
- Ireland
- First-edition OS map
- Hachured
- Latest-edition OS map
- Hachured
- Coordinates
- 52.70273, -7.16787
- SMR number
- KK015-011----
Slide toward Today to fade the historical sheet and see the modern map underneath.
David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries
Shown on 4 historical map sheets, the earliest the 1790 "Composite: Ireland." (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries).
This record in the National Monuments Service's Historic Environment Viewer ↗
The National Monuments Service's description
On top of a natural hillock, at the S end of a ridge between two converging valleys. Very good views in all directions. The site is very overgrown but the surrounding land is mostly reclaimed grassland. A flat-topped, steep-sided mound (H c. 4m; diam. at top c. 10-12m). Surrounding the mound is a terrace (Wth 4-5m) with the remains of a bank (Wth c. 3m; int. H c. 0.75m; ext. H 1.5m) intermittently about its circuit. Beyond the bank the land drops very steeply NW-SE to the floor of a small valley and SE-NW the land falls gently to a church (KK015-010001-) and graveyard (KK015-010002-) and holy well (KK015-009----). It seems likely that the mound has been largely scarped out of a natural hill by cutting the terrace and perhaps raising the centre a little. According to Carrigan (1905, vol. 3, 278), for centuries a bonfire was lit on the top of the mound every St. John’s eve.
Compiled by: Jean Farrelly
Date of upload: 23 February 2016
Nearby in the register
- Churchunder 1 mi
- Graveyardunder 1 mi
- Crossunder 1 mi
- Ritual site - holy wellunder 1 mi
Other entries of the same register within about three miles of this one, by straight line.