What is recorded here

Urraghry holds a skull pulled from the Shanvilla river in 1951, perforated and waiting for an answer that never came. The battle of Aughrim is the obvious suspect, but the hole in the bone could belong to violence, ritual or mistake. The river kept the discovery quiet, denying the men with shovels the closure they expected.

In October 1951 a human skull was discovered during County Council construction work at Urraghry, near Aughrim, Co. Galway. A mechanical excavator was being used to clean the Shanvilla river, and the skull, apparently bearing a perforation, was found at a depth of c. 0.8m below the river bed. The site was reported to the NMI by the Gardaí at Ballinasloe, who believed it to be some remains from the battle of Aughrim. The site was not investigated (pers. comm. M. Cahill and M. Sikora, NMI).

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