Ringfort - rath

The National Monuments Service's description

Situated on a SW-facing slope. This rath, or its neighbour (MO027-087001-) c. 220m to the NW, is probably the enclosure at Upper Box depicted on McCrea’s Map of County Monaghan (1793). It is an overgrown circular area (diam. 28m N-S) that slopes down to the S (H 2.4m) defined by an overgrown earthen bank (Wth of base 4.8-6.2m; int. H 0.6m at S to 1.2m at N (upslope); ext. H 1.2m at N to 2.1m at S), which is incorporated into a field bank with an outer drain (Wth of top 3.4m; ext. D 0.8m) NNW-NNE. There is no visible fosse but the entrance (Wth of base1.4m) is at SSE, the lowest point of the interior, and the interior is bisected by a NE-SW field wall. There is a local report of a large lintelled underground passage in this rath (SMR file) but the only possible evidence of this is a hollow (dims 4.6m x 4.6m; D 1m) inside the perimeter at NW, and the report is probably confusing this rath with (MO027-087001-).

The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Monaghan' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1986). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research.

Revised by: Michael Moore

Date of revision: 31 January 2018

References

McCrea, W. 1793 A map of the county of Monaghan. National Library of Ireland, Manuscripts 16.1.10 (1-4).