Ringfort - rath

The National Monuments Service's description

In improved pasture, on an E-facing slope, with excellent views to N, E and S and 85m to SE of a townland boundary with Ballyluddy. Enclosure (LI024-166----) lies 55m to NW. Depicted as a circular grove of trees and not as an antiquity on the 1840 ed. OS 6-inch map. Shown on the 1897 ed. OS 25-inch map as a roughly oval-shaped raised platform or earthwork. Described by O’Dwyer (1959, 73) as a circular-shaped enclosure (diam. 100ft/30.5m) defined by a ditch (Wth 12ft/3.66m) with no recognisable entrance, only a modern ramp cut into the SE edge. Possible bivallate ringfort surveyed by the ASI in 2008 and described as a raised circular-shaped area (24m E-W; 22m N-S) defined by a scarp, fosse, outer bank and possible external fosse with possible causewayed entrance (Wth 4m) at SSW. The scarp (Wth 2m; H 0.3m) is present from NE-E-S-W-N and has been levelled to form a field boundary from N-NNE-NE. The remains of an intervening fosse (Wth 5.0m; D 0.05-0.3m) are visible from ENE-E-S-W-N-NE. An outer bank (Wth 6.6m; int. H 0.3m; ext. H 1.2m) is visible from NE-E-S-WSW and which is incorporated into a field boundary from WSW-W-N-NE. A possible outer fosse can be seen from WSW-W-N-NE and has been re-cut in places for drainage purposes. Monument is visible as a roughly circular-shaped cropmark on OSi orthoimage taken 2005-2012, on Digital Globe orthoimage taken 2011-2013 and on Google Earth orthoimage taken 28/06/2018.

See attached a profile of monument drawn by O’Dwyer in 1959, a sketch plan and partial cross-section which was measured and drawn by the ASI in 2008 and a Google Earth orthoimage taken 28/06/2018.

Compiled by: Alison McQueen and Vera Rahilly

Date of upload: 27 September 2020

References

O'Dwyer, M. 1958-61 A survey of the earthworks in Old Pallasgrean, Co. Limerick. North Munster Antiquarian Journal 8, 69-78, 111-15.