What is recorded here

Four massive boulders rest on the southern foot of Maulin mountain, three forming a perfect triangle above Bear Haven while the fourth leans inside a field fence. People may have placed them over loved ones or marked a boundary long before written history, but the stones still hold their shape against pasture and time. The triangle suggests deliberate ceremony rather than random dumping, inviting wonder about the hands that aligned them and the lives they honoured.

Four boulder burials, in pasture, atop terrace near S foot of Maulin mountain overlooking Bear Haven. Three boulder burial stand 2m apart in form of equilateral triangle. Fourth lies c. 20m to SW incoporated into field fence. Three support stones visible beneath cover-stone (2.2m x 1.6m;T 0.9m) of E boulder burial in triangular group. Two support stones visible beneath cover-stone (1.7m x 1.3m; T 0.5m) of N monument. Single support stone visible beneath cover-stone (1.5m x 1.5m; T 0.7m) of W monument. Two support stones visible beneath cover-stone (1.9m x 1.7m; T 1m) of fourth boulder burial in fence. (O Nualláin 1978, 90, no.18) The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Cork. Volume 1: West Cork' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1992). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload/revision: 14 January 2009

Boulder-burial in Derrymihin West is a Bronze Age funerary monument, likely a simple cist or stone burial structure. Its placement within a group of four and its location on a prominent terrace suggest ritual or social significance in the prehistoric landscape.

The monument record does not grant public access. Check the route and ask the landowner before entering private land.