These stone mounds served as the starting point for the turas, a traditional prayer journey that led faithful pilgrims up to the church itself. The practice of turas, which involves walking a prescribed route whilst reciting prayers at specific stations, has deep roots in Irish Christian tradition and continues to be observed at various holy sites across the country.

The larger of the two cairns stands 1.9 metres tall with a base diameter of 2.5 metres, and appears to have an interesting backstory; it seems to have been constructed atop the ruins of an earlier hut site. If you look carefully, you can still make out the internal wall facing of this older structure beneath the stones. Just two metres to the west sits the second cairn, completing this pair of penitential markers that have guided pilgrims for generations.

These cairns at An Seanbhaile represent more than just piles of stones; they’re physical reminders of centuries of devotion and the enduring tradition of pilgrimage in County Donegal. Local knowledge, passed down through residents like Gene Curran, helps preserve the understanding of these sites and their significance in the religious landscape of medieval and early modern Ireland.