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Cairn

Court tomb

What is recorded here

On SE-facing slopes of Slieve Dart overlooking gently undulating farmland. The monument consists of a pair of galleries set back to back and 1.75m apart. They are aligned roughly E-W and are incorporated in a cairn of uncertain outline (c. 22m E-W, c. 15m N-S). The E gallery (L 6.7m, Wth c. 1.5m), which consists of two chambers, is preceded by a short ante-chamber. In front, and to S of this, are the meagre remains of a court represented by two orthostats. The W gallery is poorly preserved; only its E end survives (L 2.5m, Wth c. 1.1m). There are no indications of a court at this end of the monument, (de Valera and Ó Nualláin 1972, 1-2; Ó Nualláin 1989, 118) The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Galway Vol. II - North Galway'. Compiled by Olive Alcock, Kathy de hÓra and Paul Gosling (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1999). Date of upload: 05 August 2010 See linked document with details from Ruaidhrí de Valera and Seán Ó Nualláin, Survey of the Megalithic Tombs of Ireland. Volume III. Counties Galway, Roscommon, Leitrim, Longford, Westmeath, Laoighis, Offaly, Kildare, Cavan. (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1972).
Neolithic passage tomb, dating to approximately 3500–2500 BCE. Its dual-gallery design is rare and suggests a complex funerary or ritual function, reflecting early communal burial practices in the region.

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What survives
Recorded monument

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