A Monumental Heritage

Stepping stones into the past

Back in the mists of time, some of our remotest areas were bustling! The first known dwelling on this island was found at Mountsandel near Coleraine (7000BC). Fermanagh and Tyrone are especially rich in Stone Age archaeology. Atop a windswept upland or in a lakeside field, await intriguing stones and earthwork. Can you solve the mystery of the 7 Beaghmore Bronze Age circles? Or the curious idols on Boa and White islands in Lough Erne? The Fermanagh lake was popular with Neolithic and early Christian Celts; its shoreline and islands full of burial and dwelling sites.

Within Belfast City Hall grounds you can view the memorial paying tribute to the 22 Belfast men who lost their lives on the ship, and thanks to Pirrie's influence the Lord Mayor's Suite is also known as 'The Titanic Rooms' as craftsmen who worked on them also worked on the famous liner.

Visit the spectacle of Navan Fort near Armagh, stronghold of the Ulster kings, famous in the sagas of Cuchulainn and his Fianna warriors.

There are even more antiquities from the early Christian era. Superb examples of monastic sites, gravestones, abbeys, round towers and Celtic crosses crop up in every county. The perfect round tower on Devenish Island (Lough Erne) is worth the boat trip, as is the church on White Island, overlaying Christian and earlier imagery.

Greyabbey is one of our best monastic sites, set in parkland with a medieval herb garden. Also see: Nendrum Monastery in Down, Armagh friary, Killevy Churches, Ardboe High Cross (Ulster's first), Antrim Round Tower, Dungiven Priory (15th century tomb of an O'Cahan chief). You can even visit St. Patrick's church in Raholp and his grave in Downpatrick. Many of sites are free.

Visit the National Trust website or the Environment and Heritage for further details.

Just Some Ideas

	Apprentice Boys of Derry Association & Memorial Hall, Londonderry/Derry The Apprentice Boys of Derry Association is established for the purpose of commemorating the anniversaries of the shutting of the Gates and the Relief of Londonderry.
	Mussenden Temple and Downhill Demesne, Castlerock, Coleraine Mussenden Temple is located in the beautiful surroundings of Downhill Demesne near Castlerock in County Londonderry.
	Navan Fort, Armagh To the west of Armagh City lies Navan Fort, the ancient 'Emain Macha' of Irish history and legend and the earliest capital of Ulster. Archaeologists have made many fascinating discoveries at Navan, including the traces of a giant Celtic temple.
	Peace Bridge, Londonderry/Derry The recently opened Peace Bridge (June 2011), is a new walk and cycle bridge across the River Foyle, and is the city’s third river crossing. Costing over £14m to build, the bridge is designed for pedestrians and cyclists, and crosses the river from
	St Colmcille’s Bed, Chair & Holy Well, Sixmilecross, Omagh There are few parishes in Ireland in which there is not at least one holy well and that in many parishes there are more than one.
	St Aidan's Church and Holy Well, Limavady An inscribed stone cross at Duncrun marks the site of St Patrick's Monastery and the Roman Catholic church there is dedicated to St Aidan (C6) whose tomb stands near the old church ruins. The grave of Denis O'Hempsey (Dennis Hampson), the ...
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