Ringfort (Rath), Dromeliagh, Co. Limerick
Co. Limerick |
Ringforts
Somewhere in the undulating pasture of Dromeliagh, a low ring of earth sits quietly beneath a thicket of scrub, largely invisible to anyone who does not already know to look.
What lies beneath the vegetation is a rath, the Irish term for a ringfort, which was the most common form of enclosed farmstead in early medieval Ireland, typically dating from roughly the fifth to the twelfth century. Thousands survive across the country in varying states of preservation, and this one in County Limerick is among the less conspicuous examples, its profile flattened by time and partly compromised by more recent agricultural work.
The monument takes a sub-oval form and is defined by a sequence of concentric earthworks. At its core is an earthen bank, measuring around 2.3 metres wide, which would originally have enclosed a domestic space. Beyond that lies a fosse, essentially a flat-bottomed or V-shaped ditch cut from the surrounding ground, here about 2.7 metres across, and then a further external bank of similar width on the outer edge. The interior bank survives to only about 0.1 metres above the internal ground level, while the exterior face of the main bank rises to around 0.8 metres, giving a clearer sense of the original enclosure from outside. There is a gap of roughly one metre on the eastern side, which most likely marks the original entrance. Drainage work at the south-western edge has since cut into the fosse, eroding part of the circuit. The external bank is barely traceable from the south-east around to the west-south-west, though it becomes more legible from the south-west northward. The record was compiled by Denis Power and uploaded in June 2013.
Access to the site is not formalised, and the dense scrub that masks it means the earthworks require some patience to read on the ground. The gentle south-south-west-facing slope means the bank profiles are best observed from slightly downhill, where the exterior face of the main bank has the most visible relief. The eastern gap, the probable original entrance, is the clearest single feature to locate. As with many such monuments in working farmland, approaching with permission from the landowner is advisable. Late autumn or winter, when scrub vegetation has died back, offers the best chance of tracing the full circuit of banks and fosse.
