Scheduled MonumentsNorthern IrelandFermanaghThree standing stones
PREHISTORIC · STANDING STONE

Three standing stones

Fermanagh, Northern Ireland
NISMR MonID 9879
Period
PREHISTORIC
Site type
STANDING STONE
Nation
Northern Ireland
The designation
Reference
NISMR MonID 9879
Authority
DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR)
Grid reference
H3137048640
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Three Standing Stones is a prehistoric standing stone monument located in Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, and is protected by the Historic Environment Division under reference 9879. The monument comprises three upright stones that represent a form of ritual or territorial marker common in northern British prehistory. Such standing stones typically date to the Neolithic or Bronze Age periods, though precise dating without excavation remains uncertain.

The site sits upon bedrock of the Kilskeery Group, composed of sandstone, mudstone, siltstone and conglomerate laid down during the Chesterian period. The mixed geology of the underlying strata would have provided varied stone suitable for construction and tool-making in prehistory. The choice of this location reflects the practical and perhaps symbolic significance of the landscape to those who erected the stones.

Standing stone monuments of this type served multiple purposes within prehistoric communities: territorial markers, gathering points, burial monuments, or ritual sites. The survival of all three stones at Three Standing Stones demonstrates the durability of such monuments and their continued presence in the modern landscape of Fermanagh, forming a tangible connection to the region's ancient heritage.

Three standing stones is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 9879. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Three standing stones?

Three Standing Stones is a prehistoric standing stone monument located in Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, and is protected by the Historic Environment Division under reference 9879.

What period does Three standing stones date from?

Three standing stones dates from the prehistoric period, and is classified as a standing stone. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.

Who is responsible for protecting Three standing stones?

Three standing stones 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 9879.

What other scheduled monuments are near Three standing stones?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Crannog (5.6 km), Crannog (5.7 km), Crannog (5.8 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Three standing stones

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Three standing stones'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 Three standing stones

Three standing stones stands on Kilskeery Group, bedrock that formed in the Chesterian. The rock here is sandstone, mudstone, siltstone and conglomerate.