Mountfortescue Hillfort

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Mountfortescue Hillfort
Ráth Chnoc Réisc
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Shown within Ireland
LocationMountfortescue,
County Meath, Ireland
Coordinates 53°45′43″N6°34′34″W / 53.762048°N 6.576048°W / 53.762048; -6.576048
Type Ringditch, Tumulus, Hillfort
Area2.12 hectares (5.2 acres) (ringfort)
Diameter164 metres (179 yd) (ringfort)
History
MaterialEarth
FoundedAD 500–1000
PeriodsMiddle Ages
Designation National Monument

Mountfortescue Hillfort is a National Monument consisting of a hillfort with tumuli located in County Meath, Ireland. [1]

Contents

Location

Mountfortescue Hillfort is located about 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) north of Slane Castle and overlooks the Delvin River, a Boyne tributary.

Description

A hillfort is a circular area surrounding a hilltop tumulus (barrow mound), defined by an earthen bank with an external ditch. [2]

The Ordnance Survey records a circular enclosure (about 180 yards in diameter) with a mound at the Mountfortescue site. [1] The archaeological monument consists of Mountfortescue Ringditch, Tumulus & Hillfort. [3] The barrow cemetery at Slieve Breagh and excavation of a Neolithic settlement suggest the area had been a scene of activity throughout prehistory. [4]

References

  1. 1 2 Ó Ríordáin, Seán P. (1956). "Small Hill-Fort and Tumulus on Mountfortescue". The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland. 86 (1): 106–107. JSTOR   25509239.
  2. ↑ "ME00606 - MOUNTFORTESCUE - Hillfort". MeathHeritage.com.
  3. ↑ "County Meath (Province of Leinster) [section]". Archeological Monuments of Ireland.
  4. ↑ O'Halpin, Andy; Newman, Conor (2006). Ireland: An Oxford Archaeological Guide to Sites from Earliest Times to AD 1600 . Oxford: Oxford University Press. p.  338. ISBN   0192880578.


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