Neolithic and Bronze Age Landscapes of North Mayo: Report 2011

The third house site, H3, on Gortmelia hill, is partially exposed but is mostly covered by bog varying
in depth from 10 to 85cms. The probed profile also indicates a collapsed ring of stones, with
diameters of 8.6m internally and 15m externally.
Prehistoric settlements
Dooncarton hill
The area of bogland, where the isolated boundary on the North slope of Dooncarton hill is located, is
confined on its West side by present-day agricultural land. It is also confined by agricultural land on
the lower slopes to the East, while the higher slopes of the hillside in that area appear too steep to
allow settlement to occur. The presence of the court tomb, M14 and the stone circle, SC 2, may
indicate that the field boundaries originally extended at least that far along the North slope of the
hill. The inference that the tomb and the stone circle may be reasonably used as indicators of the
original presence of field boundaries will be discussed later. A local inhabitant, Mr James Cuff, stated
that prehistoric boundaries were also present on the agricultural land on the West side, but were
removed within living memory for building purposes.
The lowlying bog along the Northwest coast in Graghil townland mostly comprises cut-away bogland
that displays no evidence of prehistoric boundaries. It is unlikely therefore that the field systems, in
this area at least, extended to the coastline, or even extended below the 100 ft contour.
The system on the Northwest slope is mostly separated from that on the Southwest slope by
modern settlement. However as previously noted, the principal upper boundary represents a
unifying factor. The presence of a 280m stretch of field boundary and an unclassified megalith on an
island of cut-away bogland in the middle of the modern settlement also demonstrate that the
prehistoric field system originally extended into that area.
Agricultural land divides the settlement complex on the Southwest slope from the 2 stretches of
upper boundary feature noted on the Southeast shoulder of the hill. The more northerly of these 2
stretches curves around an elbow of the hillside at an altitude of 570 ft OD, its direction indicating
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