© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR)
Bivallate Rath, Lisburn is an early Christian enclosed settlement consisting of two concentric earthen banks surrounding a central homestead. Located in County Antrim, the monument sits on bedrock of Palaeogene mafic lava and associated tuff, typical volcanic geology of the region formed during the early Tertiary period.
Raths of this type functioned as defended farmsteads during the early medieval period, with the dual rampart system providing protection for livestock and inhabitants. The bivallate form represents a more substantial defensive investment than simpler ringforts, suggesting the occupant held considerable local status. The monument's survival as an earthwork testament to early Christian settlement patterns in Ulster.
The site is protected by the Historic Environment Division under reference HMG 4536, recognising its archaeological significance as evidence of early medieval social hierarchy and land use in the Lisburn area. Such settlements remained characteristic of the Irish landscape from the early Christian period through the medieval centuries, serving as focal points for farming communities and local authority.
Bivallate rath is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 4536. View the official record →
Bivallate Rath, Lisburn is an early Christian enclosed settlement consisting of two concentric earthen banks surrounding a central homestead. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 4536.
Bivallate rath dates from the e.christ. period, and is classified as a rath. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Bivallate rath 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 4536.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Bivallate rath (1.8 km), Green mound. rath & multivallate motte (1.8 km), Giant's grave. megalithic tomb (3.2 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Bivallate rath'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.
Bivallate rath stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Palaeogene, bedrock that formed in the Paleogene. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.