© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR)
Rath is an early Christian rath situated near Lisburn in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The monument occupies land underlain by Palaeogene extrusive rocks, formed from ancient mafic lava and tuff deposits that shape the underlying geology of this region. This bedrock foundation would have presented particular challenges and opportunities to the early medieval inhabitants who constructed and occupied the site.
Raths were circular or oval earthwork enclosures typically comprising one or more banks and ditches, serving as defended homesteads for farming families or minor nobility during the early Christian period in Ireland. The Lisburn rath represents an important survival of this common settlement form, which flourished from around the fifth to twelfth centuries. Such sites functioned as both domestic and economic centres, often housing livestock as well as family groups.
The monument is recorded under Historic Environment Division reference 4532 and benefits from statutory protection under Northern Ireland's heritage legislation. This designation reflects its archaeological and historical significance as evidence of early medieval settlement patterns and social organisation in the region. The site contributes to understanding the distribution and character of rath settlements across the northern Irish landscape during this formative period of Christian Ireland.
Rath is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 4532. View the official record →
Rath is an early Christian rath situated near Lisburn in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 4532.
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 4532.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Bivallate rath with souterrain & rath annexe (1 km), Green mound. rath & multivallate motte (1.1 km), Bivallate rath (1.8 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.