Ringfort (Cashel), Lavagh, Co. Sligo
Co. Sligo |
Ringforts
On the lower slopes of the Ox Mountains in County Sligo, a low oval rise in the ground marks what was once a cashel, a type of ringfort defined by its drystone enclosure wall rather than an earthen bank.
The wall has largely collapsed over the centuries, but its scale is still legible: roughly five and a half metres wide, with an internal height of just over a metre in places. The enclosure itself measures approximately 28 metres east to west and just over 21 metres north to south, oriented on a north-facing terrace, an unusual aspect that suggests the builders were responding more to the lay of the land than to any preference for sun or shelter.
What makes this site quietly interesting is how successive generations have continued to use it long after its original purpose was forgotten. The collapsed wall material may well include stones gathered during later agricultural clearance of nearby fields, meaning the ancient boundary has been quietly cannibalised and augmented over time. At the southern inner face, a possible house site is still discernible, hinting at domestic occupation at some point within the enclosure. More telling, perhaps, is a small oval sheep-fold built directly into the outer face of the wall on the eastern side. Someone at some point recognised a useful pile of worked stone and incorporated it into the practical business of farming without any apparent concern for what had stood there before. The original entrance has been lost entirely, leaving no obvious way in or out on the ancient terms.
A plantation of coniferous trees now presses close against the southern portion of the site, which will affect both visibility and atmosphere on approach. The raised oval is the clearest thing to look for from ground level, with the remnant wall spread low around its perimeter rather than rising dramatically above it.