Carrowmore facts for kids
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An Cheathrú Mhór
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Tomb 7, a dolmen within a stone circle; one of the Carrowmore 'satellite tombs'.
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 Location in Ireland
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| Location | County Sligo, Ireland |
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| Region | Atlantic Megalithic Zone |
| Coordinates | 54°15′03.08″N 8°31′09.00″W / 54.2508556°N 8.5191667°W |
| Type | Passage tomb complex |
| History | |
| Material | Gneiss, limestone |
| Founded | 3700–2900 BC |
| Periods | Neolithic |
| Cultures | Neolithic Europe |
| Site notes | |
| Excavation dates | 1977–1980, 1994–1998 |
| Condition | Partially preserved |
| Ownership | Public and private |
| Management | Admission Fee |
| Public access | Yes |
| Official name | Carrowmore Passage Tomb Cemetery |
| Reference no. | 153 |
Carrowmore (which means 'the great quarter' in Irish) is a huge collection of ancient stone monuments. You can find them on the Coolera Peninsula, west of Sligo, Ireland. These amazing structures were built a very long time ago, around 3700 to 2900 BC. This was during the Neolithic period, also known as the New Stone Age.
There are thirty tombs still standing at Carrowmore today. This makes it one of the biggest groups of megalithic (large stone) tombs in Ireland. It's considered one of the 'big four' ancient sites, along with Carrowkeel, Loughcrew, and Brú na Bóinne. Carrowmore is at the heart of an old ritual landscape. This area is dominated by the mountain of Knocknarea to the west. Carrowmore is a protected National Monument.
Contents
Where is Carrowmore Located?
Carrowmore sits on a small flat area, between 36.5 and 59 meters above sea level. It's the main spot in an ancient landscape. This area is watched over by Knocknarea mountain to the west. On top of Knocknarea is the huge stone mound called Miosgán Médhbh.
To the east, in Carns townland, two large stone mounds look over Lough Gill. Along the eastern edge of the peninsula, the Ballygawley Mountains have four passage tombs on their peaks.
What Does Carrowmore Look Like?
Thirty ancient monuments remain at Carrowmore today. There might have been more originally. However, some were lost due to quarrying and clearing land in the 1700s, 1800s, and early 1900s. The site is about one kilometer from north to south. It is also about 600 meters from east to west.
Most of the sites are "satellite tombs." These are smaller tombs that surround the largest monument. This main monument is called Listoghil. It is a cairn (a mound of stones) and sits on the highest part of the plateau.
Archaeologists classify Carrowmore as part of the Irish Passage Tomb Tradition. This is because of how the tombs are grouped. Also, the shapes of the tombs and the items found inside them are similar. Other sites like Newgrange, Loughcrew, and Carrowkeel are also part of this tradition.
However, Carrowmore tombs are a bit different. For example, most Irish passage tombs have long, tunnel-like entrances. Carrowmore tombs do not have these. Also, only one site, Tomb 51 (Listoghil), has a large stone mound.
Satellite Tombs: Smaller Monuments
The original monuments had a central stone structure, like a dolmen. This structure had five upright stones. These stones held up a capstone that was shaped like a cone. Inside was a small, five-sided burial chamber.
Each of these structures was surrounded by a circle of large boulders. These circles were 12 to 15 meters wide. They usually had 30 to 40 boulders, mostly made of gneiss stone. Sometimes, there was a second, inner circle of boulders.
Entrance stones, or passage stones, were crude double rows of standing stones. They stretched out from the central dolmen. These stones showed which way the dolmens were meant to face. They generally faced towards the central mound of Listoghil. Four of the monuments are even found in pairs.
Each monument was built on a small, flat platform of earth and stone. This helped the dolmens last so long. Stones were carefully packed around the base of the upright stones. This held them firmly in place. One satellite tomb, Tomb 27, has a cross-shaped passage. This design is also seen in later passage tombs like Newgrange. The roof, which is now gone, might have been made of stone slabs.
Listoghil: The Main Tomb
Listoghil, also called Tomb 51, was built around 3500 BC. It is 34 meters wide and has a unique box-shaped chamber. The front edge of the stone covering the entrance has marks. These might be the only ancient stone art found at Carrowmore so far.
Three large boulders were found near the central chamber and under the mound. These could be parts of a destroyed passage. Or they might be from an older stone structure built before the mound. Many satellite tombs face this central area. This suggests that Tomb 51 was the main point around which the cemetery grew. This monument contained both unburned bones and bones that had been cremated.
Exploring Carrowmore's Past
People have been studying Carrowmore for a long time. Gabriel Beranger visited the site in 1779. He drew pictures of some monuments. These drawings are very helpful. They show what Carrowmore looked like then, including some monuments now gone or damaged. Many old drawings and photos of the monuments exist.
In the 1800s, a local landlord named Rodger Walker dug at the tombs. He was looking for treasures for his collection. He didn't keep good records of what he found. Some items he dug up are now at Alnwick Castle in England.
George Petrie surveyed the sites in 1837 and gave them numbers. William Gregory Wood-Martin did the first recorded excavations in the 1880s.
Recent Discoveries
Swedish archaeologist Göran Burenhult led digs from 1977 to 1982 and again from 1994 to 1998. Ten tombs were fully or partly dug up. Listoghil was excavated from 1996 to 1998.
Digs by the National Roads Authority near Sligo found something interesting. They discovered a large, ancient enclosure. This enclosure existed at the same time as Carrowmore. Such enclosures are typical of Neolithic activity in Europe.
What Was Found?
The items found at Carrowmore are typical of Irish passage tombs. These include pins made from antler and bone. They also found stone or clay balls. Small pieces of quartz were found with most burials. This material clearly had special meaning in the passage tomb tradition.
The discovery of antler pins and seashells might suggest that the first monuments were built by people who hunted and gathered food. However, small amounts of Neolithic pottery were also found. This suggests that farming also influenced these sites.
The chambers held the remains of many people. Most of the Neolithic burials at Carrowmore were cremations. The chambers were used again over time. People from the Bronze Age and Iron Age also buried items there.
Understanding Carrowmore's Importance
Studies at Carrowmore have helped us understand when Irish passage tombs were built. Carrowmore might have some of the earliest passage tombs in Ireland.
Recent studies of ancient DNA from human bones show connections between people buried in different Irish tombs. A man buried in Listoghil, Carrowmore, was related to three others. These people were buried in Newgrange, Millin Bay, and Carrowkeel. This suggests that important families were buried in these special places during the Neolithic period.
Archaeologists like Richard Bradley say that megaliths were important. They were places for ceremonies and celebrations. They also marked special spots in the landscape. They were also memorials for important families or individuals.
Carrowmore was a starting point and a central place in the Neolithic landscape. Building large mounds like Listoghil or Miosgán Médhbh on Knocknarea might show a later time. This was when people built even bigger and more impressive stone monuments. The area around the Cúil Irra peninsula is full of such tombs. They are often on hilltops. This led Stefan Bergh to call it the "Landscape of the Monuments."
Protecting Carrowmore
Carrowmore was part of a big legal fight in the 1980s. In 1983, the Sligo County Council wanted to put a garbage dump near the complex. Five local people went to court to stop this. The case went all the way to the Supreme Court. In 1989, the court ruled against the dump.
This ruling was important. It was the first time a court officially recognized the idea of an "architectural landscape." This means that the legal protection of a national monument can also include the area around it.
Visiting Carrowmore Today
In 1989-1990, the Irish government bought about 25 acres of land at Carrowmore. This land included several monuments and a small house. The house was turned into a basic visitor center. This was the first step in making Carrowmore open to the public. More land has been bought since then. Now, most of the site is owned by the public.
The small farmhouse is close to the R292 road. It is about 2 kilometers east of Ransboro crossroads. The center has an exhibition. From March to October, it offers guided tours. You can also use self-guide options in different languages. Most of the tombs can be reached from the visitor center.
