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Ards Quay Works is a fragmentary harbour complex comprising two portions of quay wall and an associated slipway, situated on the Ards Peninsula in County Down. The monument rests upon Early Carboniferous limestone bedrock, interbedded with claystone and siltstone deposits that form the underlying geology of this coastal locality. This arrangement of harder limestone strata and softer sedimentary layers would have presented particular challenges and opportunities for the construction and maintenance of maritime facilities.
The quay works represent the physical remains of commercial or defensive maritime infrastructure whose precise original function remains uncertain. The survival of two distinct sections of quay wall suggests either the partial loss of an integrated structure or the development of separate but contemporary installations to service vessels at this sheltered anchorage. The inclusion of a slipway indicates facilities for hauling or launching craft, pointing to active maritime use.
Protected as a monument of archaeological and industrial heritage interest under Historic Environment Division reference 13579, the Ards Quay Works survive as a tangible record of pre-modern coastal enterprise. Their fragmentary condition underscores the vulnerability of maritime structures to erosion, storm damage and the reshaping of shorelines over centuries of occupation and use.
2 portions of quay works and slipway is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 13579. View the official record →
Ards Quay Works is a fragmentary harbour complex comprising two portions of quay wall and an associated slipway, situated on the Ards Peninsula in County Down. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 13579.
2 portions of quay works and slipway dates from the uncertain period, and is classified as a quay complex. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
2 portions of quay works and slipway is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Ni. The official designation reference is 13579.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Oyster midden (0.8 km), Cup-marked stone (2 km), Windmill stump (c.f. ihr 2926 for details) (3.2 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of 2 portions of quay works and slipway's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
2 portions of quay works and slipway stands on Early Carboniferous limestone, bedrock that formed in the Early Carboniferous. The rock here is major:{limestone}, Minor{claystone,siltstone}.