Funny hills (like pimples in the ground)

Saruman · 21-09-2005 11:54AM #1

Anyone know what these are actually called? What they are etc??

I dont have a pic but im sure everyone has seen them..

Think of a field or flat area of land, then somewhere in it out of no where a steep, round hill sometimes with trees growing on it.
A good example is Clonard (westmeath). There are 2 that i can see. The cool one is if you are heading on the N4 towards Galway and hit clonard there is a right hand turn signed "Hill of Down" (thats something else) and in the field on that side of the road is a very steep, round hill with a tree growing on the top of it. the hill is as tall as a tree by the way.

I tell Americans they are fairy forts

Google is not helping me find out so anyone actually know? Even if they are seen as "fairy Forts".

danniemcq · 21-09-2005 11:57AM

any pics? what size are they?

Ann Elk · 21-09-2005 12:17PM

Are they called Drumlins by any chance? - They were carved out by glaciers i think - but my geography isn't that hot so I'm open to correction.

Beruthiel · 21-09-2005 12:17PM

Saruman wrote:

I tell Americans they are fairy forts

afaik
they could be many things, places where celts once lived, burial tombs, but there so long the grass has grown over them, hence because of superstitions they were call fairy forts back in the day and people kept away from them as they weren't sure what or why they were there.

Saruman · 21-09-2005 12:21PM

Sorry no pics.. I drive past them every day but never think to bring camera and even still.. would i stop to take a pic? Probably not.. maybe some weekend when im not in a hurry.

Anyway i said they are as tall as a tree.. so maybe 50 feet or more in height. They are like a bowl in shape.

randomfella · 21-09-2005 12:23PM

Drumlins.

Ann Elk · 21-09-2005 12:24PM

Or Cairns perhaps - but i reckon probably Drumlins

Oriel · 21-09-2005 12:46PM

You're not thinking of motte and raths are you?

http://www.castlewales.com/motte.jpg

If so then they used to look like this:
http://www.pastperfect.info/sites/wark/images/lo/mbcloseup.jpg

Which will be self explanatory. They used to be castles/forts back about the 12th century or so.

Saruman · 21-09-2005 03:25PM

Thats it, mystery solved

Thanks Sinecurea

Thats what i thought it might be but could not think of the name.

Its a Motte (without the bailey), In fact a google now tells me that its St Finians Motte

here is a pic from the net: http://homepage.tinet.ie/~clonardns/MOTTE.jpg

Ann Elk · 21-09-2005 03:56PM

'Finian'!................'FINIAN'!...... What a frickin' name! No wonder he lived in that fort - the big fairy!

Good grief Jim - that was a desperate pun.....

BrianD3 · 21-09-2005 04:08PM

There are lots of these dotted around the country. I often wondered what they were.

IIRC there is one in Co. Kildare alongside the Allenwood-Sallins road.

Oriel · 21-09-2005 05:05PM

BrianD3 wrote:

There are lots of these dotted around the country

There's literally thouands of them.

mike65 · 21-09-2005 05:38PM

sinecurea wrote:

There's literally thouands of them.

There's alot less than there used to be thanks to farmers flatteneing anything in the way of a greater yield.

Mike.

Hagar · 21-09-2005 05:51PM

They are old county council workers who have been immobile for so long that the grass has grown over them. In the night you can sometimes hear the rattle of newspapers as they peruse the racing pages. Some say they are still earning overtime and allowances.

boneless · 24-09-2005 02:13PM

They were built by the Normans mainly, as initial defencsive structures. There is a splendid example of one at the old bridge in Navan. I am a nerd, aren't I??

Stompbox · 24-09-2005 02:58PM

Yes, yes you are

PaulKK · 25-09-2005 12:06AM

mike65 wrote:

There's alot less than there used to be thanks to farmers flatteneing anything in the way of a greater yield.

Mike.

Dunno if thats true in all cases Mike, I've often heard of cases of farmers being afraid to go near those "fairy rings", and lots of them won't go near them. They think it brings bad luck.

boneless wrote:

They were built by the Normans mainly, as initial defencsive structures. There is a splendid example of one at the old bridge in Navan. I am a nerd, aren't I??

I think the raths are sometimes burial sites of important people, I know one near me is told to be the burial site of the first high king of Ireland, but that could be a load of shite for all I know

boneless · 25-09-2005 01:38PM

Sweet wrote:

Yes, yes you are

It's all my sisters fault... she used to make me learn stuff. Now I can't get out of the habit... and I still like wearing dresses at the weekend.

Has anyone on Boards ever been to Four Knocks? (Getting back on topic). It's an amazing place; Neolithic passage tomb but with a difference!!

Custom22 · 25-09-2005 08:52PM

randomfella wrote:

Drumlins.

Sorry if someone has already said this but I seriously doubt its drumlins you are seeing. There are extensive drumlin belts in Ireland in mid/north west of the country but Drumlins are not really small mounds. They can be kilometers long. They have the appearance of undulating hills to the person on the ground. What you are seeing (I'm guessing) is a man-made structure. Plenty in Sligo too. I've seen a few of these mounds. I always guessed they were burial sites.

EDIT* Just read back.. motte mounds eh.

Funny hills (like pimples in the ground)

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