Fairy fort / earthen ringfort in Marlbrook

In low-lying poorly drained pasture, to the immediate S of a stream, with moderate to restricted views in all directions. The townland boundary with Ballymurphy lies 10m to W. Depicted on the revised 1897 ed. OS 25-inch map as a circular-shaped earthwork. A fulacht fiadh (LI022-012----) lies 240m to SW. Monument surveyed in 1988 and described as a high circular-shaped earthen platform (23m E-W; 21m N-S; H 1.5m) enclosed by a broad bank-like feature at E and enclosed by a very wide and shallow fosse. There is a possible entrance at S. There is a field fence at W and a drain at N, on the outer edge of the fosse. Monument surveyed by Celie O’Rahilly in 1993 and described as a recently ploughed out site, having no grass in contrast to the surrounding field. Exposed on the surface is a loamy mixture of a soft friable, almost sandy soil, which is black in places and with extents of an ash and soil mixture. Animal bones were abundant and some showing signs of butchering and having been burnt. Some small boulders were noted in the SE quadrant of the levelled monument and may have been part of the enclosing bank. In the same quadrant, a light coloured, hard clay was exposed or overturned and may represent the natural subsoil. According to local information, this monument seems to have been a platform type of enclosure. Monument surveyed by the ASI in 2000 and described as a slight rise in a gently undulating tillage field. The site is ploughed out and there is no visible trace of an enclosing element. Monument is visible as a dark green roughly circular-shaped cropmark on Digital Globe orthophotos taken 2011-13 and on Google Earth orthoimage taken 28/06/2018. See attached Google Earth orthoimage. Compiled by: Alison McQueen and Vera Rahilly Date of upload: 11 August 2020