Ringfort (Rath), Kilmeen, Co. Galway

Co. Galway |

Ringforts

Ringfort (Rath), Kilmeen, Co. Galway

In the level pastureland of Kilmeen, Co. Galway, a circular earthwork sits quietly beneath the working rhythms of a modern farm, its ancient outline partially obscured by the field boundaries that later generations simply drew straight across it.

That kind of layering, old monument and newer agricultural geometry overlapping without ceremony, is remarkably common in the Irish landscape, though it rarely fails to reward a second look.

The site is a rath, the Irish term for a ringfort, a roughly circular enclosure defined by an earthen bank and, typically, an external ditch. Ringforts were built and occupied mainly during the early medieval period, broadly the fifth to twelfth centuries, and served as the enclosed farmsteads of the period, housing a family and their livestock within a defensible boundary. This particular example measures approximately 45 metres in diameter, which places it within the middle range of such monuments. Its defining bank survives in fair condition, though a field boundary running from the north-east to the south-east has been laid directly over part of it, and a second boundary running east to west sits immediately to the south. The enclosure has not been erased so much as incorporated, the older earthwork absorbed into a later pattern of land management without quite disappearing.

Rated 0 out of 5

Visitor Notes

Review type for post source and places source type not found
Added by
Picture of Pete F
Pete F
IrishHistory.com is passionate about helping people discover and connect with the rich stories of their local communities.
Please use the form below to submit any photos you may have of Ringfort (Rath), Kilmeen, Co. Galway. We're happy to take any suggested edits you may have too. Please be advised it will take us some time to get to these submissions. Thank you.
Name
Email
Message
Upload images/documents
Maximum file size: 100 MB
If you'd like to add an image or a PDF please do it here.

Advertisement