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Ballymoney Mound is a medieval earthwork situated in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The monument comprises an artificial mound that may represent a motte, a characteristic feature of Norman and post-Norman settlement in Ireland and Britain. Such structures typically formed the defensive core of early medieval fortified sites, with a flat or rounded summit that would have supported a timber or stone structure.
The mound rises from bedrock composed of Palaeogene extrusive rocks—ancient mafic lavas and tuffs formed during volcanic activity in the early Tertiary period. This distinctive basaltic geology, common to the north Antrim plateau, would have provided a stable foundation for the earthwork's construction and remains visible in the local landscape today.
The site is recorded in the Historic Environment Division's archaeological record under reference 1325, recognising its significance within the medieval settlement pattern of the region. The mound's position within the broader landscape of Ballymoney reflects the strategic placement typical of early medieval fortifications in Ulster, though the precise date and founding circumstances of this particular example remain to be fully established through archaeological investigation.
Mound - motte? is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 1325. View the official record →
Ballymoney Mound is a medieval earthwork situated in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 1325.
Mound - motte? dates from the medieval period, and is classified as a mound. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Mound - motte? 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 1325.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Tappatowsie. mound (2.9 km), Raised rath (3.2 km), Agivey, agivey bawn, ironmongers' buildings. plantation village site, house, bawn & mill (3.4 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Mound - motte?'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.
Mound - motte? stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Palaeogene, bedrock that formed in the Paleogene. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.