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Fairy fort / earthen ringfort in Barnavihall

Fairy fort / earthen ringfort

What is recorded here

Fairy fort in Barnavihall is a well-preserved oval rath, 26 metres east-west and 17 metres north-south, defined by an earthen bank on a slight rise in marshy Galway grassland. Its narrow north-east gap may be the original entrance, admitting people or ideas rather than blocking them. The flat surrounding land makes the ring stand out like a breath held in wet grass, inviting wonder about who lived there, what they kept from the rain, and why the fairies were named before the humans remembered.
On a slight rise in otherwise level marshy grassland. Well-preserved oval rath (E-W 26m, N-S 17m) defined by a bank. A gap (Wth 1.75m) at NNE could be original. 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

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

What survives
Recorded monument

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