Rathroe

In pasture, on elevated area of an E-facing slope; land also falls to N and S. An enclosure (TS062-025----) lies c. 150m to W. A roughly circular area (diam. c. 45m) defined by a probable bank and a fosse (overall Wth 6m; basal Wth 2m; D 0.75m). The bank is engulfed by an impenetrable ring of gorse which is extending into the interior and is particularly dense in the SSE sector, obscuring the fosse and a field boundary which runs E-W along the S edge of the monument. According to Cahill (1982) in 'c. 1975. Interior of site and inner face of bank stripped to provide material for farm roads; core of bank completely exposed; largely composed of shale chips [and] ditch filled with debris of field clearance'. A large pond (dims. 16m N-S; c. 14m E-W) off-centre to the W may be the remains of the quarrying mentioned by Cahill. The monument is fenced off from surrounding field and is ungrazed. Compiled by: Jean Farrelly Date of upload: 26 August 2011