What is recorded here

Eyrephort is a burial where shifting sands revealed a young man, his short sword, shield-boss and spear in 1947. He had lain since the 9th or 10th century on the south side of Kingstown Bay, unprotected beside extensive midden deposits. The grave gave up more than bone: it gave up the shape of a life lived with weapons close at hand.

In the sand-dunes on S side of the mouth of Kingstown Bay. Site of a 9th-10th-C burial of a young man uncovered by shifting sands in 1947. The grave was apparently unprotected. Apart from the extended skeleton, it contained a short sword, a shield-boss and a spear, the latter mistaken for a dagger (pers. comm. T. Fanning). Extensive midden deposits (GA028-038001-) are known from the surrounding area. (Raftery 1960; Sheehan 1988) The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Galway Vol. I - West Galway'. Compiled by Paul Gosling (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1993). Date of upload: 05 August 2010

A 9th–10th-century Christian burial; significant as a rare find in a coastal dune environment, reflecting early medieval funerary practices in the region.

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