Looking south-west towards the modern cenetery and the main Clonmacnoise complex.
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ryaner
The only piece of rock art in Ireland with its own sign that I know of. (watch this space!)
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Marked as a mound on the OS map, this is most probably a motte. It’s on the west side of the River Brosna and has its own folly. Arch. Inventory of Offaly doesn’t even mention it.
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19/7/09
This is in the middle of a small hamlet and seems to be cared for, though how they are going to ensure it stays standing is anyone’s guess.
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Carnbane East and Patrickstown Hill from the outer bank on the southside.
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Down in the bottom of the fosse looking south at Carnbane West.
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Standing stone, cashel and passage grave.
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Looking over the cashel towards Carnbane East and Cairn T.
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Cashel very clearly defined. The rath is to its left under all that gorse.
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Quarried mound in Ballynanoma/Carrickawaddy, just below Sliabh na Caillí. 20m diameter approx.
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Looking along the eastern ramparts of the lower fort towards the upper fort in the distance.
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Remains of 2 hut sites are at bottom left. The field on the other side of the lake, behind the field with the cows, contains the main Grange/Lios circle. The hill in the distance is Knockfeerina.
Image credit: Ryaner
A stone with a hole in it and 3 chancers (Fourwinds, Bawn79 and gjrk) 5/7/09.
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Castleruddery need the services of a few good sheep at this time of year.
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Over the entrance stones with Spinnan’s Hill in the distance
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Plundered passage grave on Monpelier, 21 June, 2009.
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2 of the remaining kerbstones with the Hell Fire club in the background. The view in the distance is over Tallaght.
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I was accompanied down to these stones by Richard Moody, the son of the landowner, an enthusiastic youngfella with a pride about the antiquities on his dad’s land. Thanks Richard!
Seeing them elsewhere on the net hadn’t prepared me for the size of the stones. The 3 basin bullaun is huge and the single at the back of the copse is bulky. Richard said that his dad plants a tree down here every once in a while and that the site used to be a monastery. I’d been over at Brittas earlier where mother nature is beginning to swallow the important bullauns there – it was good to see that these are in good hands in their own protected little area.
Set just slightly south-west of the peak of a ridged hill this artificial mound is well worth checking out. From the top of the mound there are extensive views to the west, north-east to Saggart Hill and Slievethoul, Seefin, Seefingan and Seahan, east over the Wicklow mountains and Poulaphouca reservoir and south towards Carlow.
The main focus seem to be towards the west but that could be because the eastern views are partially blocked by the modern hedgerow. The mound rises to about 2 and a half metres. It’s been dug out at the top. There is a lone stone embedded into the north side of the mound, a peculiarity that gets you wondering.
Access is easy up the public footpath from the Rathmore to Blessington road.
This massive cairn must have been quite something in its day. I can only estimate it at maybe 30 metres diameter. There are quite a few large kerbstones still in situ but it’s almost impossible to get a good idea of what goes where. The south side of the cairn is now part of a field wall, much of which has been built using the cairn material itself.
South-west of the main cairn is a large bundle of field clearance and then what looks like a stone circle or a ring cairn. I wanted to stay a bit longer and explore but the farmer that owns the land was moving horses about and I didn’t feel like intruding any more than I already had.
This place is a tangled mess. The large stones are part of the kerb.
Image credit: ryaner
