Druids Altar

On N shore of Cleggan Bay. The remains of this tomb consist of a gallery aligned ESE-WNW. The front, E portion appears incomplete. The orthostats running E of the pair of transversely set jambs could be interpreted as chamber sidestones or as defining a narrow asymmetrical court. The gallery to W of these is divided into two chambers by a septal stone and jamb. The innermost W chamber is distinctly narrower and of lighter construction than the rest of the monument. A large roofstone covers the adjoining E chamber and a long stone, probably a displaced lintel, lies in this chamber immediately W of the jambs. The remains of the mound survive on S side of the monument. (de Valera and Ó Nualláin 1972, 5-7) The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Galway Vol. I - West Galway'. Compiled by Paul Gosling (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1993). 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).

Portal dolmen; likely dates to the Neolithic or early Bronze Age. Its alignment and structural features suggest ritual or ceremonial use, typical of megalithic traditions in western Ireland.