This crescent-shaped earthwork, measuring roughly 12 metres north to south and 7 metres east to west, is what archaeologists identify as a fulacht fia; one of Ireland’s most common yet enigmatic prehistoric monuments. The mound’s distinctive curved front faces northeast, and its position in this boggy landscape is no accident, with two streams flowing conveniently nearby, one to the north and another to the south.

The site occupies a gentle slope that descends from northeast to southwest, nestled between higher ground that overlooks it from both the north and south. This particular placement near water sources is typical of fulacht fia sites across Ireland, which are generally interpreted as ancient cooking places where heated stones were used to boil water in wooden or stone-lined troughs. The Bronze Age communities who built these structures, dating from around 1500 BC onwards, deliberately chose locations with ready access to fresh water and often in areas that were somewhat removed from settlements.

Today, this ancient cooking site appears as little more than a grass-covered bump in the landscape, easily overlooked by casual passers-by. Yet it represents one of thousands of similar monuments scattered across the Irish countryside, silent witnesses to the daily lives and food preparation methods of our prehistoric ancestors. The Archaeological Survey of County Donegal, compiled by Brian Lacey and his team in 1983, documented this and many other archaeological features that dot the Donegal landscape, helping to preserve knowledge of these modest but significant remnants of Ireland’s distant past.