Inchincurka Wedge Tomb

The superb looking wedge tomb of Inchincurka is one of the lesser known wedge tombs to be found in County Cork.

This small but compact tomb is a wonderful example of a Wedge Tomb.

The tomb is aligned East - West and is about 4 meters in length.
The height of the tomb is 1.5 meters and is close to 2 meters in width.  

The gallery of the tomb is very overgrown so difficult to see any detail.

Access - The site can be seen from the R585 and is best entered via a lane way to the left of the tomb.
I visited this tomb in early summer 2018 and as can be seen from the images it is somewhat overgrown. However I have seen many older images with it in a far worse condition.

Goward Portal Tomb

Goward Portal Tomb is also known locally as Big Pat Kearney's stone.
The tombs massive capstone is without doubt the stand out feature of this must see site.

Said to weigh 50 ton this capstone has slipped and now rests on two taller stones.
The capstone is 4 meters long by 3 meters in width and over 1.5 meters in depth.

The tombs chamber is over 2.5 meters in length.

Goward is located in it's own neat enclosure and is the sort of site that makes you want to spend some time when you visit.

Access -  The tomb is just off the main Hilltown to Castlewellan road and has a couple of spots for parking close to the site.

Along with the other great tombs of County Down, Goward is not to be missed.      

Cunard Portal Tomb

Cunard Portal Tomb is one of Dublin's lesser know tombs - this is probably due to the fact that the site does not appear on the current OSI maps.

The small but compact tomb is 1.6 metres in height.  
The portal stones are missing and just three chamber wall stones remain.
The capstone is 2.2 metres and diamond shaped. 

The setting for this site is nothing short of stunning and although it is close to the road getting up close is not so easy.

For visiting you will have two main problems:-
1. You can't see the tomb from the road (trust my map it will bring you close enough to see it-click on the location tab).
2. The terrain, even after a dry spell and on a very hot day was still saturated in parts (also do not wear shorts as the mountain is covered in low gorse).

Access - The road is very narrow so it is important to park carefully. As I have already mentioned, click on the location tab underneath the images and you will find it.

Poulnabrone Portal Tomb

The world famous Burren County Clare has many fantastic sites but none more so than the stunning Poulnabrone Portal Tomb.

This tomb could probably lay claim to being the most photographed megalithic in Ireland.
The early morning of my visit (which was quite dull) saw two small buses and a couple of cars in the big spacious car park beside the site.

The tomb is perfectly set on a low circular mound of loose stones with the entrance to the tomb facing north.

The large thin capstone is close to 3.6 meters in length and 2.1 meters in width.
The portal stones are in and around 1.8 meters high.

Poulnabrone was excavated in 1986 and again in 1988.
The remains of 22 individuals which included adults children and infants were discovered.
The remains and other artifacts discovered allowed the tomb to be dated to approximately 3600 BC.

Access - The site is well signposted and has a large car park just off the R480.  














 

Annaghmore Portal Tomb

Annaghmore Portal Tomb is a small but very compact tomb, which can be found in its own neat little enclosure beside the road.
   
The tomb has two portal stones (one much taller than the other), two side stones and a back stone.

The Capstone is 2.2 meters in length and 2.1 meters in width (the roof of which has some very strange stone work), this all comes together to give the tomb a most unique look.   

My one concern for this site (my visit was early summer) is that it is being attacked by ivy in a few different spots, it would be such a shame if this tomb where to become overgrown as it has plenty of character.

The site is not signposted, but if your coming from the Longford direction take the R198 for Drumlish, clicking on the location/map tab will bring you to the tomb via Google street view.   

Magheraghanrush Court Tomb

Magheraghanrush or Deerpark Court tomb as it is sometimes known is one of Ireland's largest court tombs.
The tombs impressive central court is 15 meters in length  with a single gallery to the west and two twin  chambered galleries to the east end.
The overall length of the tomb is close to 30 meters, with Sliabh na gCaológ Bui making a great backdrop. 
Despite parts of the tomb missing from where it should be, with a little work this site would be nothing short of stunning (this would include replacing two lintels and fixing the broken one) 
Deerpark is just off the R278 parking leaves you with about a10 minute walk, the pathway is surfaced but quite steep in parts.

Kilfeaghan Portal Tomb

Located about a mile off the A1 on a farm is the impressive Kilfeaghan Portal Tomb.

The real star of this site is the massive capstone, 2.5 meters long by 1.5 meters in thickness.
The capstone is said to weigh around the 35 ton mark, it rests on two portal stones which have been driven into the ground by the sheer weight of this beast of a capstone.

The tomb rests on top of a large cairn (which was mostly covered in grass on the morning of my visit).
For a better idea of the size of the cairn check this link to Jim Dempsey's great Megalithic Ireland web site.

Access - this tomb is very easy to find and is well sign posted, a walkway is provided from the farm gate.