What is recorded here

Lios Caointe is a circular earthen ringfort on a broad Clare hill where local tradition claims fairy songs still drift through the pasture. Its double banks, berm and fosse remain visible beside a man-made underground passage, while quarrying and a later field wall have cut through the outer edge. The site has watched the valley since at least the 1842 map, keeping its shape in grass and stone while people argued about what sang inside it.

On the SE-facing shoulder of a broad hill in reclaimed pasture with wide views from E to SW. Hachured on the 1842 and 1920 eds. of the OS 6-inch map. Labelled ‘Lios Caointe’ on Robinson’s map (1977) – a name deriving from a local tradition of fairy songs being heard here (Westropp 1915, 256). Listed as ‘Ringfort’ in the RMP (1996). This circular rath (int. dims. 29.3m E-W; 28.4m N-S; ext. dims. 50.3m N-S; 48.8m E-W) is defined by two earthen banks with an intervening berm and fosse. The inner bank (Wth 3.2-4.2m; int. H 0.1-0.3m; ext. H 1.5-1.6m) is traceable from SSW to E. It has been cut away at S, forming a quite straight E-W edge (L 11m; H 0.5-1m). Its outer face is poached from SSW to SW and at N. A narrow berm (Wth c. 1m) is visible around its base of most of its circuit. Outside this lies the generally flat-bottomed fosse (Wth of base 3.4-4.9m). The outer bank (Wth 5m; int. H 0.5-1.5m; ext. H 0.7-1.7m) survives from SE to NW. From NW to NE it is overlaid by a later field wall. It has been quarried out at SSW. The interior slopes slightly to the SE. There is a Man-made underground passage (CL009-100002-) in the N half of the interior. A modern gap cuts through both banks at E. The following image has been uploaded: CL009-100----_01 View of fosse at W, from N Compiled by: Olive Alcock and Conn Herriott Date of upload: 27 May 2022

A fairy fort or earthen ringfort in Ballyhomulta, likely dating to the early medieval period, is situated on a hillside with extensive views and was mapped as "Lios Caointe," a name suggesting a historical or legendary association with a "fairy grove" or ancient enclosure. The site's long-standing recognition in local tradition and its appearance on early maps indicate a possible link to both early settlement and folklore surrounding otherworldly beings.

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