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Ballynamona Lower : Court Tomb

CountyWaterford
Grid RefX 288 836
GPSX 28755 83567 (8m)
Longitude7° 34' 52.44" W
Latitude52° 0' 12.68" N
Nearest TownDungarvan (9.8 Km)
OS Sheet82
UTM zone29U
UTM x597389.11769457
UTM y5762380.112664
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Visit Notes

Sunday, 15th June 2003

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.

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All Sites Visited On 15th June 2003    « Previous Site    Next Site »

Sunday, 4th February 2007

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.

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All Sites Visited On 4th February 2007    Next Site »

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Random Gazetteer

A Random Selection of Nearby Monuments

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6.4 Km (W) there is a Standing Stone at Monaneea.
7.9 Km (W) there is a Standing Stone at Glenwilliam.
6.2 Km (WNW) there is a Standing Stone at Ahaun.
3.3 Km (WNW) there is a Standing Stone at Lagnagoushee.
8.6 Km (W) there is a Standing Stone at Boherboy.

A Selection of Other Court Tombs

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