Ringfort - rath

The National Monuments Service's description

Monument surveyed by ASI in 1977 and described as following; ‘A roughly circular enclosure (diam. 25.5m N-S; 26.5m E-W) bounded by a bank of earth and stone from the E-N-W, and by a scarp on the S. There is no indication of a fosse. The bank is best preserved on NW and it is very slight elsewhere. The bank on the NE and E is much slighter and more recent looking than elsewhere. The bank is absent from SE-S-SW. There is a gap (Wth 1.4m) in the bank on the NNW but this seems to be due to disturbance and there is no indication of an original entrance. The interior is uneven and slopes from W to E and from N to S on the W side. A roughly rectangular enclosure [structure/house] (int. dims. 5.2m NNW-SSE; 6.7m WSW-ENE) lies to the E of centre. This is outlined by a slight low bank of stone and earth on the E and N and it is cut into the natural slope on the W, its S side is obscured by a large thorn tree. The bank particularly on the W appears to be of more recent origin than the site bank and this structure may have been a farm shed of relatively recent date. The bank is overgrown in parts on the E, N and particularly on the W with thorn trees and a single thorn tree stands in the interior. The site is on the SE end of a long and relatively high NW-SE ridge in pasture land. The site is on the slope at the end of the ridge and partly on the E side of the ridge. The side of the ridge just outside the site on the W has been partly disturbed by old quarrying’ (SMR File 18/05/1977).

Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien

Date of upload: 13 February 2013