Ringfort (Rath), Kilmacomma, Co. Waterford
Co. Waterford |
Ringforts
A roughly circular earthwork sitting near the foot of a north-facing slope in County Waterford, this rath, or ringfort, is the kind of monument that rewards a second look precisely because it does not announce itself. Ringforts are enclosed farmsteads built mostly during the early medieval period, roughly between the fifth and twelfth centuries, and Ireland contains tens of thousands of them, yet each retains its own particular character. Here, an earthen bank traces a subcircular outline measuring approximately 26 metres north to south and 24 metres east to west. The bank itself is between four and five metres wide, and on the upslope southern side it still stands up to 2.2 metres high on the interior face. Elsewhere, the bank has been worn down to a scarp rather than a proper raised bank. There is no visible fosse, the external ditch that typically accompanies such earthworks, and no obvious original entrance survives.
What makes this particular example quietly interesting is the combination of modest survival and inconclusive investigation. Deciduous trees have been planted along the bank, which lends it a certain presence in the landscape while complicating any reading of its original form. The interior has been eroded by cattle over time. Archaeological testing carried out in 2003, at a location roughly 70 to 100 metres to the west-southwest of the monument, produced no archaeological material of significance, a result recorded by G. Fagan and published in the 2003 summary volume of Irish excavations. The absence of finds nearby neither confirms nor undermines the rath itself; it simply leaves the site without the supporting evidence that might otherwise help date or interpret it more precisely. The monument endures as earthwork alone, its history unverified by excavation.