
What is recorded here
Indicated is a substantial fairy fort in County Mayo, Ireland, where a thick earthen bank still stands on elevated pasture. The oval enclosure measures forty-two metres north to south and contains a faint stony wall crossing its flat centre. Hawthorn hedges climb the slopes, and a broad gap at the southeast may have marked the entrance. The fort has watched the surrounding land for centuries, unchanged except for slipping soil and passing farm stock.
In pasture, on a level expanse of elevated ground. Ground begins to fall away gently from about 20m S of the rath, providing good views. The field is bordered by a farmyard 80m to N, which restricts view in that direction.
Slightly raised broadly oval area (38.5m E−W; 42m N−S) defined by a well preserved, substantial earthen bank (Wth 5.8m at S, 5m at N; int. H 1m at S, 1.3m at N; ext. H 1.5m at S, 1.75m at N), with a somewhat broader, flattened top (Wth 1-1.5m) on the S arc. The bank appears originally to have had a width of perhaps 4.5m but slumping has increased it to between 5-6m. There is a random scatter of small and medium-sized stones along its top. A low, eroded portion (L 3m) of the bank at S exposes in section a basal core of large stones. An arc of hachuring shown outside the NW arc of the bank on the 1930 OS 6-inch map suggests an external fosse; a hint of a depression immediately outside the bank would seem to confirm this.
The interior is flat and is crossed roughly centrally on an ENE−W axis by the remnants of a wall, reduced now to a stony rise (Wth 1.5m; H 0.25m). There are several breaks/low areas, eroded by farm stock, in the bank. The largest gap (Wth 2.3m) at SE is flanked by lower sections of bank, and may indicate an original entrance. A hawthorn hedge engulfs the slopes of the bank, although the top is relatively free of overgrowth.
Compiled by: Jane O'Shaughnessy
Date of upload: 20 December 2022
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- What survives
- Recorded monument
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