Fairy fort / earthen ringfort in Dunboden Demesne

Situated on top of a prominent rise, in woodland, surrounded by pasture on the demesne lands of Dunboden House. Depicted on the 1837 ed. OS 6-inch map as a large oval-shaped earthwork. Monument described in 1971 as an oval-shaped area (dims. 45.3m N-S; 43.5m E-W) enclosed by an earthen bank, an intervening fosse and an outer bank. The inner bank is steep on the exterior where it is best preserved from SW-W-WNW and it is almost reduced to a scarp from WNW-N-E-S-SW. There is a wide U-shaped intervening fosse. The outer bank is visible from SW-WSW-W, where it is most substantial and from NW-N and from NE-ENE. Portions of the outer bank are disturbed at NE and from E-SE. A wide linear sunken trackway running NNW-SSE cuts across the NE quadrant of the monument and is defined along its upper edges by up-cast from its construction. The inner bank, intervening fosse and outer bank are disturbed by this trackway at N and SE. The original entrance is not recognisable. There is a modern gap in the inner bank at NW and a large slab lies on the bottom of the fosse outside it. The interior has a very slight ENE-facing slope and is much disturbed by tree roots and cattle. A house site (WM026-091001-) is visible in the centre with a second house site (WM026-091002-) in the NW quadrant. Compiled by Alison McQueen, Vera Rahilly and Caimin O’Brien. Date of upload: 04 November 2019