An Achill Island Tumulus

Extract

On the southern shore of Achill Island, Co. Mayo, between the cathedral rocks of Menawn and the village of Keel, lies Keel strand, a flat grass-grown plain of blown sand, some few feet above high water mark. Rather nearer to the village of Keel than to the rocks of Menawn the sand is being gradually removed by the wind, leaving a low cliff three to four feet in height facing the sea, the high water mark when I was there in September, 1911, being some three to four hundred yards away from the cliff.

A few yards nearer the sea than the cliff, numerous fossil or semi-fossil bones were exposed, almost all, as far as I could tell, being of horse with a few of pig, together with a quantity of shells evidently forming a kitchen midden. A few pebbles amongst the shells showed signs of use as hammer stones. At about the same distance from the sea as the midden, and at a short distance from it, was a low mound of sand and pebbles about 27 feet in diameter, rising about 18 inches above the surrounding sand. In the centre was a boulder standing upon end, but too heavy for me to move, and there were indications that a ring of stones surrounded the mound, but the sand drift made it impossible to ascertain this positively.