Unofficial guide. Not the National Monuments Service, the OPW, Fáilte Ireland or the landowner. Disclaimer
At a glance
- TypePromontory fort - coastal
- Recorded sizeL c. 73m, W 7.2m, H 3.7m
- StatusNational Monument
What to look for
- Entrance gap
- Ramparts
Picked out from the Archaeological Survey description below.
Can you visit?
- No source says it is open to the public.Most monuments in Ireland stand on private farmland.
- Ask the landowner before crossing fields, close gates, leave the stones as you find them.Visiting responsibly
History and description
On a sheer cliff-top headland on SW side of Inis Mór. This Nat.
Full archaeological record 140 words
On a sheer cliff-top headland on SW side of Inis Mór. This Nat. Mon. is known locally as Dún Dúcathair. It consists of an irregular boulder-strewn area of limestone pavement (110m by 80m max.) defined to landward (NE) by a massive drystone rampart (L c. 73m, Wth 7.2m, H 3.7m). Both the inner face of the rampart, with three terraces connected by steps, and the buttressed outer face are the result of 19th-C restoration. Traces of an entrance (Wth 2.2m) survive at E end but Westropp, citing Petrie in 1821, states that it 'had a perfect entrance to the west, destroyed ... by a great cliff-fall before 1839' (1914, 333-4). Outside the rampart is a dense band of chevaux-de-frise (Wth 55m max.) and within it are two groups of houses (GA119-001001-, GA119-002----). (O'Flanagan 1927a, Vol. 3, 242-50; Robinson 1986, 37-40)
References
- The monument was taken into Ownership under the National Monuments Acts 1930 to 2014 - National Monument 43.
Archaeological Survey of Ireland, National Monuments Service (CC BY 4.0) · Updated 05 August 2010 · Based on the Archaeological Inventory of County Galway Vol. I - West Galway'. Compiled by Paul Gosling. It describes the site as it was when surveyed.
Also recorded nearby
Named sites within 5 km with only a short entry in the Archaeological Survey.
- Poll na bPéistCave · 4.9 km
Visitors' notes
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Around Dún Dúchathair
Other heritage nearby
- Teampull BheanáinAncient church · 1.5 km
- St Eany's WellHoly well · 1.6 km
- Killeany Round TowerRound tower · 1.6 km
- St. Eany's Early Medieval Ecclesiastical SiteAbbey or friary · 1.6 km
- Dún Eochla RingfortRingfort · 2.7 km
- St Kieran's ChurchAncient church · 3.1 km
Recorded within 5 km
- 9 ancient churchesArchaeological Survey of Ireland
- 7 holy wellsArchaeological Survey of Ireland
- 6 ringfortsArchaeological Survey of Ireland
- 3 high crossesArchaeological Survey of Ireland
- 3 megalithic tombsArchaeological Survey of Ireland
- 2 promontory fortsArchaeological Survey of Ireland
- 2 monastic sitesArchaeological Survey of Ireland
- 1 round towerArchaeological Survey of Ireland
- 1 abbey or friaryArchaeological Survey of Ireland
- 1 castleArchaeological Survey of Ireland
- 1 stone circleArchaeological Survey of Ireland
- 1 caveArchaeological Survey of Ireland
Walks and trails
- Árann – Lúb Cill MhuirbhighWalking Trail · 14.8 km · nearest point 1.4 km
- Árann – Lúb Dún EochlaWalking Trail · 9.0 km · nearest point 1.4 km
- Árann – Lúb an ChorruchWalking Trail · 10.3 km · nearest point 1.4 km
Outdoors, towns and places to stay
- Cill Mhuirbhigh, Inis MórBeaches · 5.1 km · Excellent Quality (2025)
- Trá Inis Oírr (Main Beach)Beaches · 12 km · Excellent Quality (2025)
Other attractions nearby
- Dive AranNature and Wildlife · 2.0 km
- Aran Sea Tours and FishingNature and Wildlife · 2.1 km
- Aran Bike HireNature and Wildlife · 2.2 km
- Cill Mhuirbhigh, Inis MórBeach · 5.1 km