© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR)
Rath is an early Christian earthwork situated near Magherafelt in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. The monument is protected by the Historic Environment Division under reference 12684. Raths of this period typically consist of a circular or oval enclosure formed by one or more defensive banks and external ditches, serving as high-status residences or monastic centres during the early medieval period.
The rath is located on bedrock comprising Palaeogene extrusive rocks, a deposit of ancient mafic lavas and tuffs formed during volcanic activity in the Tertiary period. This distinctive geological foundation, characteristic of the north-central Ulster landscape, would have influenced both the construction techniques employed and the drainage conditions surrounding the monument.
Early Christian raths in this region frequently functioned as enclosed homesteads for the native Irish élite or as secular monastic sites. The earthwork's survival into the modern era, despite centuries of agricultural use in the surrounding landscape, testifies to the substantial labour invested in its original construction. Such monuments remain important archaeological records of early medieval settlement patterns and social organisation in Ulster.
Rath is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 12684. View the official record →
Rath is an early Christian earthwork situated near Magherafelt in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 12684.
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.
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 12684.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Rath (2.4 km), Giant's grave. wedge tomb (2.5 km), Standing stone and burials (2.7 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of 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.
Rath stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Palaeogene, bedrock that formed in the Paleogene. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.