Druid's Altar — Oughterlin

This feature, first shown on the 1849-50 edition of the OS 6-inch map, is to the N of Croaghan Hill in an area of rough terrain, the surface of which is rocky, uneven and strewn with boulders. It is prominently sited toward the northern end of a narrow ridge of bare rock and consists of a large slab resting on three low stones, which in turn lie flat on the rocky surface. The raised slab, which is c. 0.5m clear of the ground, measures 3.7m NNW-SSE by 2.3m wide at its southern end, narrowing to c. 1.5m at the northern end, and is c. 0.7m thick. The raised slab is tilted slightly from the horizontal, with the northern end a little higher than the southern end. This feature is not a megalithic tomb, but whether it is natural or artificial in origin is somewhat uncertain. Approximately 30m to the S there is a large boulder supported in a more or less upright position on some low stones, as if an attempt had been made to prop it up, and there is a similar feature a further 30m to the S. These are not megalithic tombs, although they have been listed as such in the SMR for County Donegal (1987). OS Revision Name Book, sheet 28 (1849-50), 39; Kinahan 1889, 280; Borlase 1897, 232, Kilmacrenan no. 10; OS 1:2,500 Name Book, sheet 28 (1902-3), 41; Somerville 1909, 219-20 (plan); Somerville 1929, 169-70 (sketch); H. Morris 1947, 41, B16; Killanin and Duignan 1962, 408 ('On the N slope of Croaghan'); Killanin and Duignan 1967, 412; Ó Nualláin 1983a, 49, no. 177; SMR 1987, 28:28, 28:29, 28:30; RMP 1995, 28:28; 28:29; 28:30. The above description was published in the 'Survey of the Megalithic Tombs of Ireland. Volume VI, County Donegal.' Compiled by: Eamon Cody (Dublin: Stationery Office, 2002). Date of upload: 22 September 2008