Sites and Monuments Record · Ireland
Ringfort - rath
Coolamber, County Westmeath, Ireland
The record
- Townland
- Coolamber
- County
- Westmeath
- Country
- Ireland
- First-edition OS map
- Hachured
- Latest-edition OS map
- Hachured
- Coordinates
- 53.70552, -7.47281
- SMR number
- WM002-013----
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
Situated on a gentle SSW facing slope on good pasture-land, 50m E of a stream, with moderate views of the surrounding countryside. Coolamber Castle (LF016-018001-) 500m to NNW, wayside cross (WM002-037----) 370m to N. A sub-circular shaped area (diam. 36m) defined by an earthen bank mainly reduced to a scarp, with wide deep U-shaped fosse and substantial earthen bank with wide U-shaped external fosse and possible traces of a third earthen bank best preserved at W. Original entrance feature not identified, gap at SE may be modern rather than an original entrance feature. There are several modern gaps in the enclosing banks which are now covered with trees and scrub vegetation. The interior is fairly even, sloping appreciably from N to S. Cultivation ridges aligned NNW-SSE run across the interior of the ringfort. Some straight earthen banks radiate from the site, it is difficult to say whether or not they are coeval with the ringfort. These linear features are visible on Digital Globe aerial photographs taken November 2011 and appear to be the remains of drainage ditches feeding into the nearby stream.
See attached profile of monument surveyed and drawn by the ASI.
Compiled by: Frank Coyne & Caimin O'Brien
Date of upload: 23 November 2016
Nearby in the register
- Cross - Wayside crossunder 1 mi
- Bawnunder 1 mi
- Castle - ringworkunder 1 mi
- House - fortified houseunder 1 mi
Other entries of the same register within about three miles of this one, by straight line.