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The burial of three children along with amber beads, bone & antler tools and animal bones were found here.
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Translates as 'Vale of the Carpenter' - this burial chamber is built over a pit cut into rock. Over forty people were found interred here.
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The Glebe House, lies directly beside Dowth, and offers accomodation at the more expensive end of acceptable B&B rates (it worked out at about £25.00 per night when we stayed). The large front bedroom looks out directly to the Dowth monument. From the entrance gates the view stretches out across the Boyne valley to Newgrange - which looks stunning from here.
The Glebe House,
Dowth,
Drogheda,
Co. Meath
Tel 041-9836101
Fax 041-9843469
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It is reported that in the 18th century the existing chamber was used by a family of squatters. They must have been a very small family of very small people!
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Bryn-yr-Hen-Bobl lies on private land owned by Lord Anglesey, according to the two biddys behind the counter in the Plas Newydd National Trust ticket office. Occasional 'Archaeological tours' are organised when this and the Plas Newydd site can be visited.
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Anyone wishing to spend time visiting the stone circles of this area should try and pick up a copy of Jack Roberts' excellent 'Stone Circles of Cork and Kerry - an astronomical guide', available from most of the tourist information centres (I picked up my copy from the shop in Bantry for 7 euro, which was roughly £4.30 sterling at the time of writing). The notes on the back of the book read:
There are over 100 stone circles in the Cork/Kerry region, the greatest concentration of Stone Circles to be found in Europe. They are of a unique type, the most distinct feature being their astronomical-calendrical orientation. At many of the circles the astronomical alignment is also harmonised with features of the sacred landscape.
Most of the entries include sketches of the site and/or a plan, with alignments illustrated. The notes include directions for getting to the sites, but be warned, these are not always entirely accurate!
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At the centre of this circle is a large block of quartz, 'Cloch Greine' or 'Sun Stone' and it is thought to have given Clonakilty or Clocha na Coilte its name.
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The word Drombeg means 'The Small Ridge'. The site is known locally as 'The Druid's Altar'.
Roughly 120 feet away are the remains of two prehistoric stone huts, which have a doorway connecting them. One of the huts has a cooking place, which was still in use up to the 5th Century CE. A trough located within this kitchen was used for boiling water. This was done by dropping red hot stones into the water. It has been tested, and it showed that 70+ gallons of water could be boiled for three hours using this method.
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This site is very prominent when viewed using the aerial photo feature on multimap.
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Rev. J R Luck of Stonyhurst College excavated the lower mound in 1894 revealing a cinerary urn dated to around 1250BCE containing the cremated remains of a body. Also found were a young man's skull and a flint knife, a boy's skull and a child's skull.
During WWII J.R.R. Tolkien stayed at Stonyhurst College, which lies within easy walking distance. His son was a boarder there and Tolkien, to escape the blitz, spent many months there in order to concentrate on his writings. It is said that some of his inspiration for the Shire comes from the Ribble Valley.
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For a fantastic view of the Thornborough complex link through to multimap and have a look at the ariel photograph.
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The Harris Museum, which has three urns excavated from the site, may be contacted on 01772 258248
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Here's what William Wordsworth had to say about Long Meg...
The monument commonly called Long Meg and her daughters, near the river Eden:
A WEIGHT of awe, not easy to be borne,
Fell suddenly upon my Spirit - cast
From the dread bosom of the unknown past,
When first I saw that family forlorn.
Speak Thou, whose massy strength and stature scorn
The power of years - pre-eminent, and placed
Apart, to overlook the circle vast -
Speak, Giant-mother! tell it to the Morn
While she dispels the cumbrous shades of Night;
Let the Moon hear, emerging from a cloud;
At whose behest uprose on British ground
That Sisterhood, in hieroglyphic round
Forth-shadowing, some have deemed, the infinite
The inviolable God, that tames the proud!
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