Ballyfounder Rath

Ballyfounder Rath is the remains of a ringfort situated on the Ards Peninsula, in County Down, Northern Ireland. It consists of a circular mound about 20m in diameter, with traces of an outer bank and ditch.[1] It is a Scheduled Historic Monument and is at grid ref: J6207 4954.[2]

Excavations

Excavations carried out by Waterman found a Paffrath ware ladle in a layer containing decorated glazed jugs, relating to a ringfort heightened by the Anglo-Normans. This suggested that the ladle was not deposited until the middle of the 13th century, which would mean that it had survived for at least a century.[3] This secondary occupation of Ballyfounder consisted of a small rectangular timber-framed building, a few other post-holes and occupation debris dated to the 13th century by the Anglo-Norman pottery.[4]

References

  1. ↑ "Ards Peninsula". The Stone Circle. Retrieved 14 July 2009.
  2. ↑ "Ballyfounder". Scheduled Historic Monuments. Retrieved 14 July 2009.
  3. ↑ Barry, T.B. (1987). The Archaeology of Medieval Ireland. London: Methuen. p. 96.
  4. ↑ Edwards, N (1990). The Archaeology of Early Medieval Ireland. London: BT Batsford. p. 19.