Ringfort - rath

The National Monuments Service's description

Situated on the E side of a low ridge, in pasture, with good views to NNW and SE, restricted elsewhere by ridges. Depicted on the 1837 ed. OS 6-inch map as a circular-shaped earthwork. Depicted on the revised 1913 ed. OS 25-inch map as a slightly modified oval-shaped bivallate earthwork which is bisected by a field boundary running NW-SE.
Monument described in 1980 as a bivallate oval-shaped area (42m WNW-ESE; 38m N-S) enclosed by an inner bank, an intervening fosse and an outer bank. The inner earth and stone bank is best preserved from SE-S-W-NW and is less well preserved from NW-N-ENE. There are remains of an internal and external stone facing from N-NE-ENE. The stone facings are visible elsewhere around the perimeter but only in short stretches. The inner bank has a number of disturbance gaps at ESE, S, SSW, SW and WSW but none are recognisable as an original entrance gap. The fosse is wide and deep where it is visible from NW-N-ENE and from S-W-NNW. The outer earth and stone bank only survives from NW-N and at ENE, where it is very low and faint. The interior has a gentle E-facing slope and an uneven surface. The remains of a post-1700 field wall running NW-SE bisects the interior as shown on 25 inch OS map. Short stretches of earth and stone banks are visible within the interior: (1) Running in from the bank at NE towards & almost as far as the centre; (2) Running (approx. L 2m) out from the NE side of the field wall just N of centre; (3) Running (approx. L 2m) out from the SW side of the field wall S of centre and nearer the perimeter bank. Whilst (1) could be an original feature (2) and (3) are later features apparently connected with the post-1700 field wall. ridges. In the SW quadrant of there are a number of large stones visible on the surface, under which is evidence of animals burrowing. These stones could mark the position of a potential souterrain, although there is not enough evidence to classify this area of disturbance as a souterrain. Monument is visible today as a tree-lined enclosure on Digital Globe aerial photography.

Compiled by: Alison McQueen, Vera Rahilly and Caimin O’Brien

Date of upload: 04 February 2019