This is one very remote site! I think that deciding to come here stopped me getting to at least three of the sites that I had intended to see today. This doesn't particularly bother me, because those places will still be there next time I venture this way and I can now say that I've been to Ireland's most southely court tomb.
The tomb is just one hundred meters from the cliff-top, from where you can see east all along the stunning coastal cliffs as far as Co. Wexford.
The tomb is protected by a rather rustic looking fence, which unsurprisingly does not leave a lot of space around the monument. You approach looking into the court, which would have been very impressive - 7m wide and 6m deep. Just a few of the very large court stones remain standing.
The gallery, on the other hand, is almost perfect. The style is somewhat unusual in a few respects, but it is most definitely a court tomb gallery. The walls each consist of two slabs, which are 1.5m long and a little over 1m tall. Where these stones meet there is a single slab that divides the gallery into two chambers. This slab is just 20cm shorter than the width of the gallery.
The entrance is marked by two very small jambs, which are set inside the front edges of the wall stones.
All Sites Visited On 15th June 2003 « Previous Site Next Site »
It's hard to believe that it's been nearly 3 years since I visited this great site. Ever since my previous visit I have wanted to come back in the winter when (hopefully) the vegetation around the monument is a little lower.The problem is that the site is so far away from Dublin and in the winter it can be a long, difficult drive.
My efforts today were rewarded, though, with much lower vegetation. I could also see further up the coast to the east, too. The views to the south stop at the lighthouse a short distance down the coast. When standing by the stones it's hard to picture that this site is so high above the sea, but the fact that you can't hear the surf does help to remind you of this.
There is now a "Beware of the Bull" sign on the gate, but on this visit there was no sign of one. This does not mean that there is never a bull in these fields, though, so take care if you visit here.
A Random Selection of Nearby Monuments
Antynanum (Co. Antrim) | Cregganconroe (Co. Tyrone) | Goward (Co. Down) |
Mautiagh (Co. Leitrim) | Ballymacdermot (Co. Armagh) | Shanballyedmond (Co. Tipperary) |