Cairn - burial cairn

The National Monuments Service's description

At the highest point of Freestone Hill, immediately NW of centre of the enclosing hillfort (KK020-018002-). A circular cairn (diam. c. 23m) bounded by a kerb of medium sized vertical set stones and concentric to this, at a distance of 3m, an inner kerb formed by somewhat smaller stones (Bersu 1951, 5-10). It was excavated by Bersu in 1951 and the excavation published by Raftery in 1969 (Raftery 1969, 1-108). There were at least 16 burials within the cairn, some of which were in the 2 pits or 4 cists (Waddell 1990, 101). In all the remains of at least 18 individuals were found, including three inhumations and the remainder cremations (ibid.). The burials were concentrated in the E half of the mound and one lay 1.5m E of the cairn (ibid.). Associated finds included two small bone pins, several vases and a perforated bone plaque provided an Early Bronze Age date for the cairn (ibid.; Raftery 1994, 41).
During the Iron Age the cairn was truncated by a circular wall (diam. 18m) and a larger oval enclosure (dims. 37m x 30m), the cairn being robbed to provide material for the wall (Raftery 1969, 6; 1994, 41). Also during this later phase of occupation of the hillfort a cist in the cairn was emptied and reused as a hearth (Raftery 1994, 41).

Compiled by: Jean Farrelly

Date of upload: 23 November 2020

References

Bersu, G. 1951 Freestone Hill: a preliminary report on the excavations. Old Kilkenny Review 4, 5-10.

Raftery, B. 1969 Freestone Hill, Co. Kilkenny: an Iron Age and Bronze Age cairn: excavation Gerhard Bersu. Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy 68C,1-108.

Raftery, B. 1994 Pagan Celtic Ireland: the enigma of the Irish Iron Age. London. Thames and Hudson.

Waddell, J. 1990 The Bronze Age burials of Ireland. Galway University Press.