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Mound, Moyle is a possibly medieval motte and souterrain earthwork situated on Palaeogene bedrock composed of mafic lava and tuff. The monument lies on the coastal geology of north Antrim, where ancient volcanic activity has left a foundation of dark igneous rock beneath the present landscape. This geological base would have influenced both the construction and stability of the earthwork, which likely dates to the early Christian or medieval period.
The mound's form suggests it may have served as a fortified dwelling site, with the potential souterrain indicating occupation practices common to both early Christian settlements and later medieval strongholds in Ulster. The souterrain—an underground passage or chamber—represents a building tradition with deep roots in prehistoric and early medieval Ireland, though such features persisted in use or were reused throughout the medieval period.
The site is protected under the Historic Environment Division of Northern Ireland, which recognises its archaeological significance. The monument's survival in the Moyle landscape makes it an important record of early or medieval settlement patterns in this region, where such earthworks are scattered across a geology shaped by volcanic activity in the distant past.
Mound, possibly motte & souterrain is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 622. View the official record →
Mound, Moyle is a possibly medieval motte and souterrain earthwork situated on Palaeogene bedrock composed of mafic lava and tuff. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 622.
Mound, possibly motte & souterrain dates from the e.christ. period, and is classified as a mound. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Mound, possibly motte & souterrain 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 622.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Carn an truagh, knocklayd. megalithic tomb, possibly passage tomb (2.5 km), Standing stone (2.9 km), Cashel with souterrain (3.2 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Mound, possibly motte & souterrain'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, possibly motte & souterrain stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Palaeogene, bedrock that formed in the Paleogene. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.