What is recorded here

Fairy forts are not fairy creations. They are human buildings from centuries ago, misnamed because people stopped understanding them. In Ballyshane, a round grassy area sits among ordinary farmland, marked only by a local name and a change in the land's shape. That is enough to know it is not a natural feature. It is a abandoned human place, waiting for recognition.

The following description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Carlow' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1993). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload/revision: 17 July 2007 Approximately circular unenclosed area (diam. c. 30m) of rough grazing in otherwise well managed improved pasture. Known locally as 'Raheen'.

A fairy fort, or earthen ringfort, in Ballyshane is a circular earthwork typical of early-medieval Ireland, likely dating to between the 5th and 10th centuries AD. Local tradition associates such sites with the fairy folk, and they were often avoided for fear of disturbing supernatural inhabitants.

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