What is recorded here

Breaghwy holds a children's burial ground inside a rath, yet the intact earth contradicts the old claim that levelling exposed the graves. That contradiction does not erase the function of the place, because a rath can be a living boundary rather than a broken scar. The children may have belonged to the household that held the rath, and the family may have returned to that edge until the edge disappeared from memory.

In a rath (MA039-030001). In the SMR (1991) and the RMP (1997) a children’s burial ground is listed at his location, the source of information being a reference in Aldridge (1969, 85): ‘In Breaghwy (Mayo 39) the rath marked has been levelled except for the northern portion cut off by a fence; this remains as a CBG.’ This rath (MA039-030001-), which is fully intact, does not match Aldridge’s description. This would suggest that an error was made by the SMR, and that this rath is not the location of the children’s burial ground recorded by Aldridge. Compiled by: Jane O’Shaughnessy Date of upload: 27 January 2020

Children's burial ground associated with a rath, likely dating to the Early Christian or medieval period. Its significance lies in the rare documentation of a dedicated children’s burial site in a ringfort context, offering insights into local funerary practices and social structures.

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