Srahanboy

Srahanboy is a strange part of Laois.

It is quite beautiful and enchanting yet you always get the impression visitors are not welcome.

Directional signs always seem to be pointing in the wrong direction and signs to points of interest have all been neglected with most also facing the wrong direction.

It is such a pity to see a place in the foothills of the Slieve Bloom mountains appear so unwelcoming.

There is a large Norman Motte in Srahanboy along with many and various types of Barrows so this place was obviously a large and highly important Bronze age funerary site.

There is also an overgrown Children's burial ground (cillíní), several Ringforts (Raths), at least one extant Standing Stone (Gortnaglough, which may once have been used as a Mass Rock) and a recorded but now missing Bulluan stone as well as a tiny portion of a remaining Castle wall.

Srahanboy is a perfect example of all that is wrong with Laois heritage.

It is neglected, overgrown, unwelcoming, badly signed, seldom visited by outsiders and its antiquities are forgotten about or missing.

I caught something in the corner of my eye a while ago when in the area. Sure enough it was a perfectly formed Bowl Barrow.

With very little damage to it and an almost perfect hemispherical mound surrounded by a deep fosse (ditch) it was almost a perfect example of the type.

I've passed on the details of this Laois rarity to the relevant authorities. When I checked up on it I realised it was unrecorded on the database of Sites and Monuments.

Although I'm not 100% sure I think there is just one other Bronze age Bowl Barrow recorded in Laois.

The Barrows at the Heath in Laois which are also completely neglected are Ring Barrows with a nice example pictured below which is easy to find right beside the school.

The others are mostly overgrown unless on the golf course.