Rock art in Fegart

In the N half of a pasture field, on elevated ground at the NE edge of Doagh Island. The location has excellent views N and E over Trawbreaga Bay, with the long stretch of Malin peninsula beyond; to W ground rises gradually in a series of small hills and rocky peaks; higher hills and mountainous peaks form a dramatic distant backdrop at SW. Abundant cupmarks and cup-in-ring motifs are dispersed on a relatively flat, smooth fine-grain bedrock surface which is flush with ground level. The exposed surface (c. 8m ENE-WSW; c. 2.6m N-S at W end, c. 1m at E end) is roughly triangular in plan, broadest at W and narrowing at E, but the full extent of the stone is unknown as the margins are concealed by encroaching sod/grass. It is located on the E edge of a low, natural grass-covered rise, with a gently fall of ground to NE-SE. The rock surface mirrors the slope, tilting down slight to E and SE. A grid of natural linear fissures on N-S and E-W axes subdivides the stone surface into rectilinear compartments or panels, with minor undulations or slight changes in level in parts. Faint natural striations on an E-W axis also cross the stone. Over 50 motifs are visible on the exposed surface, with a high density on the W and middle portions of the stone, petering out towards the E-SE sector. Cupmarks predominate on the N half where the fissures define narrow elongated spaces (c. 0.15-0.2m N-S; 1-2m E-W). The cupmarks range in diameter from 3-4cm to 8-10cm, and mostly occur in E-W rows, dictated by the narrow panels. On the SW and S sectors of the stone, the fissures are more widely spaced providing broad expanses for decoration, and here there is a more complex array of motifs. It includes a cluster of large cup-and-multiple ring motifs interspersed with cupmarks, and a series parallel linear grooves (L c. 20cm). The largest motif is in the SW corner. It consist of a central cup (diam. 8-10cm) with four close-set rings (ext. diam. 50-52cm) with a linear groove extends through the rings to S. To NW of this motif are 5-6 parallel linear groves on a NW-SE axis, terminating at their SE end at a natural fissure; 25cm to N is a cup with two rings; 30cm to NE is a cup enclosed by one ring and three concentric arcs; 40cm to E is a disc-like cup (diam. 15cm) with two rings, and abutting the E side of the latter is a cup (diam. 7cm) with one broadly spaced ring (diam. c. 22cm). Amongst the cupmarks in the middle portion of the stone, there are a number of small cup-and-one ring motifs, the rings (diam. 6-12cm) mostly indistinct. In the NE sector a ring encloses a central cup with two slight dimples or micro-cups on the W side of the central cup. Immediately to E of this are a number of short linear scratch marks of uncertain significance. An exposed rock surface bearing a single rock art motif (DG004-088002-) is 0.8m to NE; it may be part of the same bedrock seam but intervening grass cover conceals proof of this. Notified to NMS by Faolain Porter. Attached images: DG004-088001-_01 Viewed from S, overlooking the mouth of Trawbreaga Bay DG004-088001-_02 Viewed from W, overlooking Trawbreaga Bay DG004-088001-_03 Viewed from NE DG004-088001-_04 viewed from E DG004-088001-_05 N half viewed from E DG004-088001-_06 NE sector, viewed from E DG004-088001-_07 SW quadrant, viewed from N DG004-088001-_08 Detail of motifs in SW sector, viewed from S DG004-088001-_09 Detail of motifs in S sector, viewed from S Compiled by: Jane O'Shaughnessy Date of upload: 20 January 2023

Likely dating to the Neolithic or Bronze Age, the rock art at Fegart may have had ritual or territorial significance, possibly linked to landscape orientation or seafaring activities. Its placement on elevated ground suggests a strategic or symbolic role within the wider island landscape.