Every so often you go to a monument that's a little bit out of the ordinary. This is one of two such sites I visited today. First of all - is it a wedge tomb or is it a giant kist ? If it was in The Burren in CLare you'd definitely say it was a wedge tomb and this is why I'm using this classification.
The chamber is constructed using two massive side stones and a backstone set slightly in from the ends of the sides. The single roofstone covers the chamber completely. The other end of the chamber is open, leading into a massive space 1.6m x 2m in plan and nearly 2m high!
To add to the oddness of the monument it seems to be set into a massive mound that has been mutilated over the millenia, now having the appearance of grass-covered sand dunes.
This monument used to be hard to reach, but a new bungalow now sits close by and the road to this skirts the mound, making access easier (although the entrance to this road is hard to spot). A lovely black labrador lives at the house and is guaranteed to come and try to get into all your photos.
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This is an explanation of (and a bit of a disclaimer for) the coordinates I provide. Where a GPS figure is given this is the master for all other coordinates. According to my Garmin these are quite accurate. Where there is no GPS figure the 6 figure grid reference is master for the others. This may not be very accurate as it could have come from the OS maps and could have been read by eye. Consequently, all other cordinates are going to have inaccuracies. The calculation of Longitude and Latitude uses an algorithm that is not 100% accurate. The long/lat figures are used as a basis for calculating the UTM & ITM coordinates. Consequently, UTM & ITM coordinates are slightly out. UTM is a global coordinate system - Universal Transverse Mercator - that is at the core of the GPS system. ITM is the new coordinate system - Irish Transverse Mercator - that is more accurate and more GPS friendly than the Irish Grid Reference system. This will be used on the next generation of Irish OS maps. |