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Counterscarp rath is a small Early Christian rath located near Coleraine in County Londonderry. The monument is a ringwork defence, a common settlement form in early medieval Ireland, with its defining characteristic being a counterscarp—an outer bank of stone or earth running parallel to the main rampart. This dual-bank arrangement would have enhanced the defensive capability of the enclosed homestead against both animal and human threats.
The rath sits on Palaeogene extrusive bedrock of mafic composition, comprising ancient lava flows and tuffs that underlie this part of the Coleraine landscape. This igneous geology shaped the local stone resources available to early medieval inhabitants for constructing their fortifications. The site represents the settlement pattern of the Early Christian period, when such raths served as defended farmsteads and residences for the rural elite and their dependants across northern Ireland.
The monument is protected by the Historic Environment Division of the Department for Communities under reference number 12329. Its survival as an earthwork testament to early medieval settlement and land use in the Coleraine area, though its precise dimensions and internal features remain to be fully documented. Counterscarp raths are relatively uncommon, making this example of particular archaeological interest within the regional Early Christian heritage.
Counterscarp rath is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 12329. View the official record →
Counterscarp rath is a small Early Christian rath located near Coleraine in County Londonderry. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 12329.
Counterscarp 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.
Counterscarp 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 12329.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Tamney cromlech. stone circle or cairn (0.9 km), Rath (3 km), Rath (3.1 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Counterscarp 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.
Counterscarp rath stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Palaeogene, bedrock that formed in the Paleogene. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.