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| Avebury Henge - which has 2 stone circles! |
| Newgrange (courtesy of Knowth.com) |
| Neolithic Megaliths- Size Does Matter Because of size, and the use of stone, Megaliths (lit.: Big Stones) are the most common remain from these Neolithic peoples. |
Bronze Age Megaliths - more than just tombs |
Celtic Contributions - Forts and Ceremonial Stones |
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| Court/Cairn Tombs: These are the oldest of the Neolithic monuments. It is simply a multi-chambered tomb covered with earth. It generally faces East, has an external courtyard and were used for multiple generations. The name stems from a court area from which the tombs itself is accessed. In Ireland formerly known as horned cairns. (Ireland, Scotland, Wales) |
Single Burial/Cists: These are very simple graves - a pit filled with the deceased's ashes or body and maybe some pottery. The simplicity of these graves, and the reduced occurrence of megalithic graves, implies a more egalitarian society. (Ireland, Scotland, Wales) |
Hilltop and Promontory Forts Most of the Kingdoms (or Tuath in Ireland) had hilltop forts which may have been used as permanent residences for the leader or just for emergency purposes. They are typically built on a hill or a cliff and surrounded by a stone wall. Some also refer to these as Oppida. (Ireland, Cornwall, England, Scotland) |
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| Portal Tombs: Also called dolmens, they consist 3 or 4 tall side walls with 1 or 2 huge capstones on top. The capstone generally leans one direction, leaving one side open which had been covered by a smaller stone. (Ireland, Wales, Scotland, England) |
Wedge Tombs: They have a single entrance, which usually faces South-West. They are most commonly found in Connaught, Munster, Ulster and the northern part of County Clare in Ireland. Much of the time, they were in the uplands, where many of the more pastoralists and their flocks inhabited, before the bogs. (Ireland) |
Broch: Also called duns, these are unique to Scotland; they are considered round tower fortifications by some archaeologists and homes to others. A typical Broch is about 65 feet in diameter with walls that are 10 feet thick. These 10 foot thick walls are actually hollow with flat storage spaces. There are usually stairs leading to higher floors, but most are not well enough preserved to see these upper levels. They are consistently located near farm land and water and can easily be defended. They were probably a way to also demonstrate social status of specific families. (Scotland) |
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| Passage Tombs/Mounds: They are comprised of a central chamber with a passage leading into it covered with an earthen mound. They tend to have art; the walls inside and out have swirls, eye-patterns and other designs. Newgrange in County Meath (see right) is one of the most famous examples. (Image from www.knowth.com ) Many of these tombs and mounds have large stones surrounding and inside them with carved images of zig-zags, spirals, triangles and others possibly representing the sun and moon. The passage tomb at Knocknarea in County Sligo is the legendary burial place of Queen Medb (Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales) |
Henges: A henge is a circle in the earth; we assume they were used for ceremonial purposes. They are created by scraping out the center of a circle to form a ridge on the circumference. Many henges show organized cremation of animals as well as the use of wooden and/or stone posts. (Ireland, England) |
Royal Sites: Emain Macha, now Navan Fort, is an excellent example of this type of site. This is a circular enclosure, 143 feet in diameter, with a mound in the center. This specific site was the seat of power for the Ulaid. (You may recognize the name of this tribe from Cu Chulainn, who was a king of Ulaid. If you don't, then be sure to check out our Pantheon page!) The enclosure had circles of wooden poles which were taller as the neared the center and the roof over the whole was thatched. (Ireland) |
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| Long Barrows: These are some of the earliest Neolithic burial mounds; very simply they are communal graves used between 4000-3000 BC. They are typically 99 feet long with walls of chalk. People were laid to rest in their own side chambers, facing eastward. (England) |
Round Barrows: These are circular mounds, typically used to bury community leaders. They are often several in a line off of a Neolithic Long Barrow. There are quite a few different subsets of the round barrow. The first three are bell bowl and disc barrows, all of which have a mound surrounded by a ditch. The names describe the shape of the mounds. It has been theorized that disc barrows are usually for women and the bell ones for men. The other 2 remaining types are pond barrows, which have a depression carved out of the center and are surrounded by a bank, and saucer barrows which are just flatter and surrounded by a ditch. (England) |
Earth-Houses: Underground cellars, specifically found in Orkney, typically have long underground passages which lead to a round chamber. The purpose is still unknown. (Scotland) |
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Stone Circles and Rows: What this term describes is self-evident, but some of their aspects may not be. Some circles, especially in Ireland, had tangent rows of stones. Others had concentric circles or intersecting circles (between the henges and the circles, did you ever think that geometry class would be so handy?). Since I assume you want to hear more, specifically about Stonehenge, click here. (England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales) |
Ritual Stones: Towards the end of the Pre-Roman Celtic era an increasing number of 7 foot tall carved stones are seen. They are commonly covered in the traditional swirling, spiral patterns. (Ireland) |
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Alignments: Although some date to the bronze age, others date to the Neolithic period. These are basically rows of standing stones. They are generally aligned in a NE-SW pattern like Bronze Age wedge tombs. In Ireland, 3 stone alignments are the most common. (England, Ireland, Scotland) |
Fogou: An underground, man-made, stone lined passage. Archaeologists have no standard theory on why they were made. The word is from the Cornish for cave. (Cornwall) Please feel free to check out the picture from Chris Tweed at www.henge.org.uk |
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The basic forms used to decorate
megalithic monuments (left to right)
megalithic monuments (left to right)
- dot/cupmark
- line
- circle
- quadrangle
- arc
- zigzag
- wavy line
- spiral
- oval
| picture courtesy of Chris Tweed |
| Neolithic Irish Court Tomb |
Other Unusual Monuments/Stones
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There were 3 main phases of circle building:
Phase 1(before 3000 BC): circles from this time period tended to be over 33 yards/30 meters in diameter.
A majority from this phase were located on the hillsides around the Irish Sea. Typically there was a single
wider gap to mark the entrance. Some also had a single standing stone outside the ring.
Phase 2 (2600 BC): the stones from this era have rings which are more perfected than were creatd in the
first phase and the circles were less consentrated on the Irish Sea. Rings like The Ring of Brodgar in the
Orkney Islands and Stanton Drew in England were over 98 yards/90 meters in diameter. Styles ranged from
from simple single rings to concentric rings. The number of stones used varied from area to area. Some
contained avenues which lead into the circle or circles.
Phase 3 (2000BC-900BC): by this time fewer stone circles were built, and they were not on as grand a
scale, generally. Many stone cirlces were completely abandoned by 900 BC.
Phase 1(before 3000 BC): circles from this time period tended to be over 33 yards/30 meters in diameter.
A majority from this phase were located on the hillsides around the Irish Sea. Typically there was a single
wider gap to mark the entrance. Some also had a single standing stone outside the ring.
Phase 2 (2600 BC): the stones from this era have rings which are more perfected than were creatd in the
first phase and the circles were less consentrated on the Irish Sea. Rings like The Ring of Brodgar in the
Orkney Islands and Stanton Drew in England were over 98 yards/90 meters in diameter. Styles ranged from
from simple single rings to concentric rings. The number of stones used varied from area to area. Some
contained avenues which lead into the circle or circles.
Phase 3 (2000BC-900BC): by this time fewer stone circles were built, and they were not on as grand a
scale, generally. Many stone cirlces were completely abandoned by 900 BC.