Visit to Counties Louth, Armagh and Down.

All of the following sites can be found on   http://www.megalithomania.net/

This weekend I visited the following sites:-

1/   Proleek wedge tomb, Co Louth.
2/   Proleek portal tomb, Co Louth.
3/   Aghnaskeagh portal tomb, Co Louth.
4/   Aghnaskeagh (long) chambered cairn, Co Louth.
5/   Clontygora "modern" stone circle, not a genuine megalith, Co Armagh.
6/   Clontygora court tomb, Co Armagh.
7/   Clontygora wedge tomb, Co Armagh. 
8/   Clonlum cairn / portal tomb, Co Armagh.
9/   Ballymacdermot court tomb, Co Armagh.
10/   Burren court tomb, Co Down.

Click on images to enlarge.

1/  Proleek Wedge tomb.  OS map no 29. Grid Ref J 083 110



From the side

 

Looking lengthwise towards the rear.



Looking into the gallery with the one remaining capstone.



Looking lengthwise from the rear.

 This is a really impressive wedge tomb and well worth a visit not least because you can kill two birds with one stone, about 100 metres away from it is this beauty.......

2/  Proleek portal tomb.  OS Map no 29. Grid Ref J 083 110



Side on with repaired orthostat.



From the front



This is one BIG capstone.



I love the shape of this capstone.....its got character.



Small stones on top of capstone.

There is a heap of small stones on top of the capstone which people throw up there.....don't know why... do you get a wish or something if the stone you throw stays up there ?

3/  Aghnaskeagh portal tomb. OS map no 29. Grid Ref J 076 137

With protective wall running around tomb.

Orthostats with cairn rubble surrounding them.

Kerb stones.

 with orthostats and cairn.

4/  Aghnaskeagh chambered cairn. OS Map no 29. Grid Ref J 076 137.

This is a really difficult site to try and explain and photograph. When I first looked at it I was totally confused. It just looked like a mass of rocks with a square or three among them...agh but on study of it what unfolds is really magnificent.....  To me the complex is best described as a triangle with two  slightly convex sides... somewhat like an "A"  on its side.....

Looking over the "A" complex the straight side is to the left.



Looking back over complex to point where previous photo was taken.

There are several burial chambers in the complex. I'm going to start with the four most obvious......

  1/   This reminds me of a boulder burial or a very mini portal tomb.

2/  This I think must be one of two of the original burial chambers.

3/   This must be the second of the two original burial chambers.

4/   This is the last of the very obvious chambers, I don't think this was an original burial but added at a later time. Ive no reason for this just a feeling, really wish I had someone knowledgeable to discuss this site with.


I'm afraid after the four above burials I'm at a bit of a loss, I can definitely identify the following picture as another chamber (kist burial)


I had read on the "Megalithomania" site before my visit that there are 6 - 7 chambers on this site but try as I might I could only identify 5 of them. Perhaps one or two of them are double chambers. Anyway this is a site I'll definitely be visiting again as I don't feel I understand it yet. I would thoroughly recommend it to all "Megalithomaniacs" as a must see site.

5/   Clontygora "Modern" stone circle....

I must admit it had me fooled for all of 30 seconds before I remembered reading about it......  Notice the "standing stone" in the wall in front of the house to the left of the "circle"....   Just 100 metres down the road from it is the absolutely 100% genuine.....

6/   Clontygora court tomb. OS Map no 29. Grid Ref  J 099 194.



Imagined reconstruction on information board at site.



Court and tomb from front.



I love the two stones on the right.



Entrance to tomb with capstones.



Taken from left of front.



Looking from behind.



These are BIG stones! Taken from side. 

 7/   Clontygora wedge tomb.  os map no 29



Sadly theres really nothing much left here.

8/  Clonlum cairn / portal tomb. OS map no 29. J 046 207.

I don't know what to make of this site..... as T4W says its hard to classify. Its a Linkardstown portal dolmen cairn tomb kist.....think that just about covers it all...lol.

9/  Ballymacdermot court tomb. OS Map no 29. Grid Ref J065 239.



The court.



The court looking direct at entrance to chambers.



From front looking into all three chambers.



First chamber.



Middle chamber.



Rear chamber looking back towards front.



Center chamber from side.



Putting it in its positional perspective from the left.



Wow can I see things in this stone,favourite one.


10/   Burren court tomb.  OS map no 29. Grid Ref J 135 225.



Yep thats someones front garden!




 This was my last site of the day, and what a dinky wee thing it was as they'd say in this part of the world. I met the owner of the house, (a really nice gentleman) while I was there. He told me when his father was building the house the relevant authorities came round while it was being built and stopped the building until they assessed the situation. They then came back and told him he would be allowed to proceed providing he didn't interfere with the tomb or the level of it. He kept his word and the house owners really do look after it.

For previous blogs look down and click on older posts.