Ballynoe Stone Circle
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The stone circle of Ballynoe is on the Lecale Peninsula in the townland of Ballynoe ( Irish An Baile Nua ) in County Down in Northern Ireland , four kilometers south of Downpatrick . Its hybrid concept is unprecedented on the island . The only counterpart is the Swinside stone circle in Cumbria . Ballynoe and Swinside are at 54 ° 17 'north on either side of the Irish Sea .
The little disturbed stone circle still consists of 55 stones, some of which are up to 1.8 m high. The entrance seems to have been in the west, where four large monoliths form a kind of double portal. The circle has a diameter of about 35 m and encloses two hills, which are located under the central long hill. The two round hills, once framed by curb stones, were built within the already existing circle. Outside the circle, perhaps as the remains of a more extensive alignment , lie three pairs of stones ( English outlier ).
Ballynoe was partially excavated by AE van Giffen (1884–1973) in the 1930s . He uncovered a stone box at each end of the long hill (including a three-part box ). The boxes contained the burned bones of seven individuals. A number of stones smoothed with water were found in the hill. The purpose and date are still unclear. According to Aubrey Burl (1926–2009), the finding is the result of a multi-phase use that began in the late Neolithic and ended in the early Bronze Age . It is unclear whether a Middle Neolithic sherd of the Carrowkeel ware belongs to the stone circle or to one of the hills.
Nearby are the ruins of the early Christian church at St. John's Point and St. Cooey's Holy Well .
- Ballynoe Stone Circle
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See also
literature
- Aubrey Burl: Rings of stone. The prehistoric stone circles of Britain and Ireland. Frances Lincoln Publishers et al., London 1979, ISBN 0-906459-03-6 .
Web links
Coordinates: 54 ° 17 '27.4 " N , 5 ° 43' 34.7" W.