Ballykeel Portal Tomb
Ballykeel Dolmen · Ballykeel Cairn
Middle Neolithic·Irish Portal Tomb·🇬🇧 County Armagh, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
About
About Ballykeel Portal Tomb
Tripod portal tomb at the foot of Slieve Gullion's western flank, County Armagh, built c.3500 BCE above a Forkhill river tributary. The dolmen sits at the southern end of a 30×10 m cairn, whose north end contains a cist; capstone 2.5 m long rests on three portals. Excavated 1960s, it yielded Late Neolithic pottery and flints, and is intervisible with Ballykeel's northern cairn and Slieve Gullion summit cairns.
Why it mattersTripod portal tomb at the foot of Slieve Gullion's western flank, County Armagh, built c.3500 BCE above a Forkhill river tributary. The dolmen sits at the southern end of a 30×10 m cairn, whose north end contains a cist;
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Dual use of cairn ends
Theories
- 01Landscape intervisibility to Gullion
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 3500 BCE
- Period
- Middle Neolithic
- Culture
- Irish Portal Tomb
- Purpose
- Portal tomb on cairn with cist
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
c. 3500 BCE
Initial construction
c. 1248 CE
Rediscovery
On the ground
Structures & features
54.1367° N · 6.4712° W · 45 m · 2 mapped features
Tripod portal tomb
portal tombCapstone 2.5 m on three portals at south end of cairn
54.1367° N · 6.4712° WNorth end cist
cistCist at north end of 30 m cairn
54.1369° N · 6.4711° W
Gallery