Bohonagh
51°34′48″N8°59′56″W/ 51.580102°N 8.998987°W Bohonaghis anaxial stone circlelocated 2.4 km east ofRosscarbery,County Cork,Ireland.The circle is thought to date from theBronze Age.A boulder burial is sited nearby[1](grid ref: 308 368).[2]
Features
[edit]The stone circle comprised 13 stones set in a circle with a diameter of 30 ft. Four out of the 13 stones are missing and three were re-erected after excavation. Twoportal stonesare set radially on an east–west axis to the recumbent stones and are 240 cm high. At just under 8 ft, these stone are among the tallest of any Irish stone circle. The axis from these stones to the large axial-stone on the west side, points to sunset at theequinoxes.[1]Many of the stones have quartz inclusions and many small pieces of quartz are associated with the circle.[3]
A boulder burial is sited 20m east of the circle, and its large capstone (weighing almost 20 tons[3]) has seven or more smallcup-markson the upper surface. Two of the three small supporting stones are ofquartzand a fourth has been uprooted. A nearby loose slab also features cup-marks. The complex, which included a wooden house (which had been excavated) is of Bronze Age date.[1]
Excavations
[edit]In 1959 the site was excavated and a central pit containing charcoal and cremated bone was found.[3]
References
[edit]- ^abcWeir, A (1980).Early Ireland. A Field Guide.Belfast: Blackstaff Press. p. 113.
- ^"Bohonagh".The Megalithic Portal.Retrieved11 June2008.
- ^abc"Bohonagh Recumbent Stone Circle - Co. Cork".Megalithics.com.Retrieved11 June2008.
Sources
[edit]- McNally, Kenneth (2006). "Ireland's Ancient Stones" (Belfast: Appletree Press).ISBN0-86281-996-2
External links
[edit]- Irish Megaliths - Photographs of Bohonagh
- Megalithic Ireland - Photographs of Bohonagh Stone Circle
- Irish Antiquities - Bohonagh Boulder Burial and Stone Circle[permanent dead link]
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