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Moyle Round Cairn is a neolithic occupation site in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, protected as a scheduled monument by the Historic Environment Division. The site lies upon bedrock of unnamed extrusive rocks from the Palaeogene period, composed of mafic lava and mafic tuff formed millions of years after the monument's construction. This dark volcanic geology underlies the rolling landscape where neolithic communities settled.
The round cairn represents a substantial communal undertaking, built from locally gathered stone during the neolithic period. Such monuments served multiple purposes within early farming societies, functioning as territorial markers, burial structures, or gathering places for ritual and ceremony. The dark stone of the surrounding bedrock would have shaped the appearance and working of the site, with builders selecting materials from the immediate landscape.
The designation of Moyle as both a round cairn and neolithic occupation site indicates evidence of sustained human activity rather than a single construction event. This combination suggests the monument was not merely raised and abandoned but formed part of a broader neolithic settlement pattern in this part of Antrim. The site remains an important witness to the earliest farming communities in Northern Ireland and their relationship with the land.
Round cairn & neolithic occupation site is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 818. View the official record →
Moyle Round Cairn is a neolithic occupation site in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, protected as a scheduled monument by the Historic Environment Division. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 818.
Round cairn & neolithic occupation site dates from the neolithic period, and is classified as a occupation site. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Round cairn & neolithic occupation site 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 818.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Craigagh altar. craighagh altar and enclosure (4.7 km), Standing stone (5 km), Two standing stones (5.1 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Round cairn & neolithic occupation site'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.
Round cairn & neolithic occupation site stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Palaeogene, bedrock that formed in the Paleogene. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.