Ringfort - rath

The National Monuments Service's description

In pasture, located on a fairly level terrace or undulation on the SW side of a ridge, which provides very good views to SW. There is rising ground to N−NE.
Roughly circular area (diam. 28.4m N−S) defined by a scarp. The scarp, which retains a slight internal lip at NE, is enhanced at S−W by the natural fall of the ridge slope, but is low and dilapidated generally. At NE−SE it is incorporated into a field fence which flanks a N−S farm road.
The E half of the interior is level and grassy. There is no trace of a souterrain (MA071-052002-) indicated as ‘Cave’ in the W half of the rath on the 1838 and 1931 OS 6-inch maps.
Three roughly circular or oval quarry pits in a roughly N−S row cut through the W half of the interior. Each pit extends from the perimeter scarp towards the centre of the rath interior, and is ringed by much loose stone and overgrowth. The pits measure:
Southernmost pit (c. 6m N−S; 4.5m E−W; D 0.6m)
Middle pit (diam. c. 8m; D 1m)
Northern pit (10m NW−SE; 8.4m NE−SW; D 1.5-1.8m)
The rath perimeter is thickly ringed by hawthorn, blackthorn and brambles. There is an E−W field drain (Wth 1m; D 1m) at the base of the scarp on the N side of the rath; and an old farm track/lane, flanked by field fences, skirts the base of the slope on the S side of the rath.
It is located within a dispersed cluster of raths, all within a radius of c. 500m. The closest raths (MA071-051----; MA071-050----; MA071-111----) are located 230m to N; 175m to NW and 200nm to SW, respectively.

Compiled by: Jane O’Shaughnessy

Date of upload: 30 July 2021