This great example of a court tomb was restored after excavation. It consists of a 17m long trapezoidal cairn, which is 6m wide at the rear and 13m wide at the court. The court is constructed with very unevenly matched orthostats (which decrease in height as they get further from the entrance) making it look a little untidy. The entrance jambs, which are also unmatched, support a gabled lintel very much like [ite:1197]. The court is U-shaped and 6m wide at the front.
The entrance leads into a 10m long gallery that is segmented into three chambers. Each chamber is separated from the next by a pair of jambs. The first chamber is almost round; the second tapers; the third one broadens slightly before tapering to where the missing backstone would be.
Sitting at the rear of the gallery and looking out through the entrance you can see that it is clearly aligned to a small bump on the horizon. One of the most spectacular features of this site is its location on the north shore of Lough Mallon, which is L-shaped. The lough streaches away southeast and the turns sharply to the east. A boat trip down and around the bend would take you to the base of Cregganconroe Mountain, which when facing it from the bend looks very much like a recumbent sleeping figure - yes, I'm obsessed with them!
A couple of things to note about this site. One is access. Although this is a national monument and enjoys public access rights, all the gates on the muddy track to it where padlocked. Secondly is the pathetic size of the compound that is fenced off. To stand in the compound and take a picture of the whole court you would need a very wide angle lens. An extra 6ft in each direction would have made all the difference.
Click Thumbnail to View Full Size Image
_
_
_
_
_A couple of new gates have been put up to ease access to the site, but there is still one locked gate to climb on the way around the lough. The track was also far muddier than on my previous visit - BIG boots of wellingtons are essential when coming here, especially after recent rain.
Click Thumbnail to View Full Size Image
_
_
_
_All Sites Visited On 4th June 2005 « Previous Site Next Site »
| PAUL G from GLENGORMLEY |   |
A Random Selection of Nearby Monuments
 Dunteige (Co. Antrim) |  The Cashell (Co. Monaghan) |  Carndoo (Co. Antrim) |
 Shanballyedmond (Co. Tipperary) |  Cloghany (Co. Fermanagh) |  Drumhallagh Upper (Co. Donegal) |
