Barrow — bowl-barrow in Rathdoony Beg

In pasture, on the spine of a N-S ridge which affords panoramic views. Part of a small barrow cemetery consisting of an adjacent ring-barrow (SL033-039003-) immediately to W and another larger bowl-barrow (SL033-039001-) c. 30m to S. This bowl-barrow consists of a conical oval grass-covered mound (diam. 9m at base; H 3.5m) enclosed by a fosse (Wth 3.3m; D 0.4m). A resistivity survey indicated the presence of an outer bank (Mount 1995a, 81). Partial excavation in 1995 (Mount 1996, 78-9) revealed that the mound was constructed of clay, silt and sand with occasional cut sods and contained an iron fragment, animal and human bones and charcoal. The mound was revetted by a single course of stone kerbing (ibid.). It was also determined that the mound was built on top of scorched earth, probably resulting from the lighting of a funeral pyre and wood from the base of the fosse was radiocarbon dated to 380-120 cal. BC, giving an Iron Age date (Mount 1998, 21). The excavation also determined that the adjacent ring-barrow (SL033-039003-) was built onto the existing bowl-barrow creating a figure-of-eight monument (ibid.). The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Sligo' compiled by Ursula Egan, Elizabeth Byrne, Mary Sleeman with Sheila Ronan and Connie Murphy (Dublin Stationery Office, 2005). Date of upload: 18 January 2008