PREHISTORIC · CAIRN

Round cairn

Limavady, Northern Ireland
NISMR MonID 11548
Period
PREHISTORIC
Site type
CAIRN
Nation
Northern Ireland
The designation
Reference
NISMR MonID 11548
Authority
DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR)
Grid reference
C7012028350
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR)

Overview

History & significance

Round cairn is a prehistoric burial monument situated near Limavady in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. The cairn consists of a mound of stones constructed during the Bronze Age over bedrock formed from Palaeogene extrusive rocks, the mafic lavas and tuffs that underlie much of this region. This geological foundation is typical of the volcanic landscapes that characterise parts of north-west Ulster.

The monument is classified as a round cairn, a burial form common throughout Ireland and Britain during the Bronze Age, when such stone mounds served as communal or individual sepulchres often containing cremated remains. The scale and construction method would have required considerable community effort and reflected both practical burial practice and the social importance placed on marking the dead within the landscape.

The cairn is protected under the Historic Environment Division of Northern Ireland under reference 11548, ensuring its preservation as part of the archaeological heritage of County Londonderry. Despite its age of over three thousand years, the monument remains a visible testimony to Bronze Age funerary practice in this part of Ulster and continues to form a notable element of the local archaeological record.

Round cairn is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 11548. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Round cairn?

Round cairn is a prehistoric burial monument situated near Limavady in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 11548.

What period does Round cairn date from?

Round cairn dates from the prehistoric period, and is classified as a cairn. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.

Who is responsible for protecting Round cairn?

Round cairn 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 11548.

What other scheduled monuments are near Round cairn?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Well glass spring. wedge tomb (2.9 km), Rath (3.4 km), Aghanloo airfield. wwii airfield. aghanloo airfield (3.5 km).

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Everything a full report reveals about Round cairn

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Round cairn's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.
Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman World
Ireland was never conquered by Rome, so this traces the island's Iron Age kingdoms and its contact with the Roman world.
Historic Records
The 19th-century records of this place: valuations, Ordnance Survey memoirs and topographical accounts.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Target Zones
For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from prehistory to the present day.
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Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

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The ground beneath

The bedrock under Round cairn

Round cairn stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Palaeogene, bedrock that formed in the Paleogene. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.