What is recorded here

Under a five-foot boulder in a Limerick ringfort, a broken urn held cremated bones when Ó Ríordáin dug in 1934. Its rim faced downward, the rest gone, as if the grave had forgotten how to keep what it caught. The stone did not shelter so much as mark the place where remembering failed.

One of 4 urn/cist burials (LI048-034017-020-) in W half of bivallate ringfort (LI048-034016-) excavated by Ó Ríordáin (1940, 128-132) between 1934-5. Urn burial described by Ó Ríordáin (1940, 111-112) as; ‘Burial IV – In describing Burial No. III [LI048-034019-] mention was made of a large stone to the south of it, one of two placed N.E. of the entrance. This was an irregular boulder, about 5 feet [1.5m] in greatest dimension, supported on smaller stones. Under its south-western side and somewhat protected by the boulder we found the remains of an urn with cremated burial. Only the rim of the vessel remained; it had been placed mouth downwards and the remainder of the urn had at some period been removed. This burial and the one next to be described suggest an extreme degeneration of the dolmen form of grave.’ See attached plans and photos from Ó Ríordáin. Compiled by: Fiona Rooney Date of upload: 5 September 2021

Urn burial in Cush is a prehistoric inhumation burial, likely dating to the Early Christian period. Its significance lies in its association with a ringfort and the broader pattern of urn burials in Ireland, which provide insights into early funerary practices and social structures.

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