The Ardmore Stone Donegal.
Perched in a field on a small hillside just outside the village of Muff in Donegal and overlooking Lough Foyle lies the Ardmore Stone, sometimes called the Ardmore Gallaun.
This large upright monolith is almost perfectly rectangular in shape and probably weighs at least several tons. It must have taken quite some effort to set it upright in its present position.
One face of the stone in particular is covered with simple Cup marks along with several Cup and Ring marks and some of them are surrounded by multiple carved rings.
The markings on the stone date it to sometime in the Bronze Age so it's at least 2500 years old but probably older.
There are Portal Dolmens (tombs) nearby and at one time there were many standing stones located around the area, many of which have since disappeared over time.
The collection of ancient tombs and stones located around the area attest to its historical significance as a place of continuous occupation for millennia and the close proximity to Lough Foyle would have provided for easy access by boat and also served as a source of food from the sea.
The townland here is called Ardmore hence the name for the stone.
The parish area is known in Irish as Iskaheen (Eskaheen) which can be interpreted into English as clear water/pleasant water.
Ardmore translated to English can be interpreted as meaning great height or a great plateau.
The Ardmore Stone is located in pasture on private property so my thanks go to the owner Seán for kindly allowing me access to take some photographs.
The angle of the sun made it difficult to take decent pictures and the inquisitive cattle nuzzling my bag made for unsteady shooting so the images are not great quality.
The area is a scenic gateway for further exploration of the Inishowen peninsula and further afield.
The Ardmore Stone itself is a beautiful relic from times past and its sheer size combined with its wonderful rock art make it very unusual and well worth a visit but do check with the landowner first for permission to access it.
Coordinates here :
55°04'58.0"N 7°15'42.0"W
55.082777 - 7.261677
Dúchas.ie - On Standing Stones....
Database of Irish Placenames logainm.ie - Eskaheen