Rathglass

In rough pasture, located on a prominent rise, from which there is a steep fall of ground to the River Deel which lies 55m to S and marks the townland boundary. The location overlooks a bend in the river, and there are excellent views to SE and SW along the river valley. Named ‘Rathglass’ on the 1838 and 1922 OS 6-inch maps, this rath consists of a raised circular area (25.3m N–S; c. 25m E–W) defined by a bank of earth and stones, and enclosed by a fosse and an external bank, evident now only on the W half. The inner bank (Wth 3.6m; int. H 0.8m; ext. H 1.4m, at N) is best preserved at NW–NE, but is reduced elsewhere to a scarp retaining only a slight internal rim; stones protruding along the inner edge may be remnants of a kerb. The fosse is evident at SE–W as a terrace (Wth 1.7m), with a fall of ground on its outer edge; at SE-S the terrace has an almost vertical scarp faced with stones, the result of being incorporated into a later field boundary. At W–NNE the fosse can be traced as a shallow depression (Wth 1.6-2m), and is defined on its outer edge by the external bank, which is reduced to a low, sod-covered rise (Wth 1.6-2m; ext. H 0.2m). The fosse and external bank cannot be traced on the E arc, where remnants of a linear N-S field fence (Wth 1.2m) overlie their line. The NW quadrant appears to be at a slightly higher level than the rest of the interior, which is level. The entrance may have been at SE where there is a gap or break in the bank, now obscured by overgrowth. The perimeter is ringed with thorn bushes, gorse and brambles; the interior is grassy with clumps of ferns and brambles. There is a structure (MA038-044001-) located 15m to N. Compiled by: Jane O'Shaughnessy Date of upload: 25 July 2019

Rathglass, Mauteoge is a ringfort situated on a prominent rise overlooking the River Deel, typical of early-medieval defensive or agricultural settlements in Ireland. Local tradition associates such sites with fairy folklore, and this rath may have been considered a threshold between the human and supernatural worlds.