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The Danes Cast (South) is a prehistoric linear earthwork located in the Newry and Mourne district of Northern Ireland. Linear earthworks of this type, typically comprising banks and ditches, served varied functions across Iron Age and earlier societies, often demarcating territorial boundaries, controlling livestock movement, or defining settlement zones. The monument sits on bedrock of Late Silurian to Early Devonian age, composed of felsic igneous intrusion formed during the Early Devonian period, which has shaped the local topography and drainage patterns that would have influenced its positioning and construction.
The earthwork's alignment and form reflect the strategic relationship between human activity and the underlying geology of this upland region. Felsic bedrock, being harder and less weathered than softer substrates, would have created a naturally defensive and well-drained foundation for such linear features.
The Danes Cast (South) is protected as a scheduled monument by the Historic Environment Division under reference 6063, recognising its significance as evidence of prehistoric land use and social organisation in this area of Ulster. The monument remains a substantial archaeological resource for understanding early settlement patterns in the region.
The danes cast, the danes cast (south). linear earthwork is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 6063. View the official record →
The Danes Cast (South) is a prehistoric linear earthwork located in the Newry and Mourne district of Northern Ireland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 6063.
The danes cast, the danes cast (south). linear earthwork dates from the prehistoric period, and is classified as a linear earthwork. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
The danes cast, the danes cast (south). linear earthwork 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 6063.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including The shankill. cashel, reused as killeen (3.3 km), Megalithic tomb (4.6 km), The shankill. church site & cross-carved boulder (4.6 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of The danes cast, the danes cast (south). linear earthwork'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.
The danes cast, the danes cast (south). linear earthwork stands on Unnamed Igneous Intrusion, Late Silurian To Early Devonian, bedrock that formed in the Early Devonian. The rock here is felsic-rock.