What is recorded here

Ballybarrack is a place where rock art was cut into stone, then the stone was quarried and reused as a jamb in a man-made underground passage. E.P. Kelly excavated that passage in 1977 and found concentric motifs truncated at the edges, suggesting the decorated outcrop had been broken up rather than left untouched. The marks survived only because someone chose that stone for a doorway, carrying old lines into a newer dark passage.

The following description is derived from both the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Louth' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1986) and the 'Archaeological Survey of County Louth' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1991). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload/revision: 17 July 2007 Stone bearing rock art re-used as jamb in Man-made underground passage (LH007-072002-) excavated by E.P. Kelly in 1977. The stone bore a number of concentric motifs which were truncated, suggesting that a rock outcrop with rock art motifs had been quarried.

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