Barrow (Ring Barrow), Lisrobin, Co. Cork
Co. Cork |
Barrows
In a pasture field on a north-east-facing slope in Lisrobin, County Cork, a small circular enclosure sits quietly in the landscape with two stones at its centre, one upright, one fallen.
That pairing is what sets this site apart. A ring barrow, a type of prehistoric funerary monument typically consisting of a low circular mound or flat interior enclosed by a ditch and an outer bank, is common enough across Ireland. The presence of standing or associated stones within the central area is less so, and gives this particular example an additional layer of quiet peculiarity.
The monument measures roughly 7.5 metres north to south and 9.5 metres east to west, enclosed by a shallow fosse, that is a surrounding ditch, with a low external bank that rises to about 0.8 metres on the outside. At the centre stand two stones placed approximately 0.85 metres apart. The upright stone, roughly rectangular in plan and orientated on a north-east to south-west axis, stands 1.27 metres tall and measures 1.36 metres by 0.8 metres at its base. Beside it, a second stone of similar dimensions lies prostrate on the ground. Whether the fallen stone was always recumbent, or once stood alongside its companion, is not recorded. A field fence running east to west skirts the northern side of the site, marking the boundary between the monument and the working farmland around it.