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Ballymoney Rath is a raised rath located in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. A rath is a small, fortified farmstead typical of early medieval Ireland, usually consisting of a circular or oval enclosure defined by an earthen bank or stone wall. This example is raised, meaning its interior ground level is elevated above the surrounding landscape, a characteristic that provided defensive advantages and improved drainage on potentially waterlogged terrain. The monument is situated on bedrock composed of Palaeogene extrusive rocks—ancient mafic lavas and tuffs formed during intense volcanic activity in the early Tertiary period, roughly 66 to 2.6 million years ago. This distinctive geological foundation underlies much of the surrounding landscape.
The rath dates to the early medieval period, when such settlements were widespread across Ireland and represented the dwellings of free farmers and minor aristocracy. Raised raths like this one were labour-intensive to construct, requiring significant community effort to build up their defensive banks. The monument is protected under the Historic Environment Division's scheduling system, reference number 1379, recognising its archaeological and historical importance as evidence of early medieval settlement patterns and social organisation in Ulster.
Raised rath is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 1379. View the official record →
Ballymoney Rath is a raised rath located in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 1379.
Raised 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.
Raised 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 1379.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Rath?, motte and bailey & 2 urn burials (4.6 km), Raised rath (4.7 km), Raised rath & annexe (5.5 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Raised 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.
Raised rath stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Palaeogene, bedrock that formed in the Paleogene. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.