Ringfort (Rath), Ballyogan, Co. Sligo
Co. Sligo |
Ringforts
On a prominent ridge above the undulating pasture of Ballyogan in County Sligo, a circular earthwork sits in a state of quiet dilapidation, its original purpose still legible in the landscape if you know what to look for.
This is a rath, a type of ringfort that once served as an enclosed farmstead during the early medieval period, typically from around the fifth to the twelfth century. Thousands survive across Ireland in various states of preservation, but this one carries a particular detail that lifts it above the ordinary.
The enclosure measures thirty-one metres in diameter, defined by a bank that has weathered considerably over the centuries. At its southern side, the bank still rises to an external height of 1.4 metres, while internally it barely clears 0.3 metres, giving a sense of how much the original earthwork has slumped and eroded. The bank is five metres wide and, at the western arc, is revetted internally with large stones, meaning the inner face was reinforced with a drystone lining to hold the earthen structure in place. The original entrance is thought to have faced east, a common orientation for early Irish enclosures. What makes the site particularly notable, however, is the presence of a souterrain, an underground stone-lined passage or chamber, of the kind frequently found in association with raths and believed to have served for storage, refuge, or both. This one can be traced both within the enclosed area and immediately north of the enclosing bank, suggesting it extended beyond the rath itself, perhaps connecting to an external area now lost to view.