In 2011, archaeologists preparing for a proposed dam development uncovered a cluster of ancient hearths that predate the cairn itself by several centuries. These hearths, consisting of charcoal spreads, shallow pits, and a clay spread, yielded radiocarbon dates of 3783-3659 BC from hazel charcoal samples, placing them firmly in the Middle Neolithic period. The discovery of six flint artefacts amongst the clay spread, including a convex end scraper and a large retouched blade, confirms that this ridge was a site of human activity long before the cairn builders arrived.

The hearths represent just one chapter in the ridge’s long history as a focal point for prehistoric communities. Archaeological excavation revealed that after the Neolithic period, Bronze Age peoples continued to recognise the significance of this location, leaving behind their own monuments in close proximity to the ancient cairn. These include a burnt spread, a pit, and a fulacht fia; a type of Bronze Age cooking site common throughout Ireland.

What makes this site particularly intriguing is the continuity of human activity it represents, spanning from the Middle Neolithic through to the Bronze Age. The initial hearths suggest seasonal camps or gathering places where our ancestors worked flint tools and tended fires some 5,700 years ago. Later generations clearly recognised something special about this low ridge overlooking the lough, choosing to memorialise it with a cairn and continuing to return here for various activities throughout the millennia that followed.