© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR)
Mount hilly, mount wholly is a counterscarp rath situated in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, and protected as a monument of archaeological significance by the Historic Environment Division under reference 2997. The site rests upon Palaeogene extrusive rocks, primarily mafic lava and tuff, geological foundations that shaped the local landscape during the Paleogene period approximately 66 to 23 million years ago. This underlying geology would have influenced the settlement patterns and defensive capabilities of the Iron Age and early Christian communities who occupied the region.
The rath represents a characteristic form of Irish ringfort, a circular or oval fortified farmstead defined by one or more concentric banks and ditches. The counterscarp configuration indicates a particular defensive design with ditches positioned to maximise protection. Raths of this type typically date from the Iron Age through to the early medieval period, serving as residences for farming families and occasionally as strongholds for local chieftains or ecclesiastical communities.
The site's survival in the modern landscape preserves evidence of early Irish settlement patterns and land use in Antrim. The specific topography and underlying volcanic bedrock would have provided both natural advantages and constraints for the construction and maintenance of the defensive earthworks. Such sites remain vital for understanding the social and economic organisation of early Irish society before and after Christianisation.
Mount hilly, mount wholly. counterscarp rath is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 2997. View the official record →
Mount hilly, mount wholly is a counterscarp rath situated in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, and protected as a monument of archaeological significance by the Historic Environment Division under reference 2997.
Mount hilly, mount wholly. 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.
Mount hilly, mount wholly. 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 2997.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Antrim castle. c17th castle (5.5 km), Bog head. rath and souterrain (7.1 km), Mound - motte? (7.2 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Mount hilly, mount wholly. 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.
Mount hilly, mount wholly. counterscarp rath stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Palaeogene, bedrock that formed in the Paleogene. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.