Knockoneill Court Tomb

Knockoneill is a Neolithic court tomb near Swatragh in County Londonderry. Upright stones define a curved forecourt leading into the main burial gallery, the arrangement from which this monument class takes its name. A subsidiary chamber lies behind the gallery and is entered through a separate side passage. Unusually, a stone forming the end of the main gallery also serves as a side of the additional chamber. This relationship makes the architecture particularly important when considering development and reuse. Excavations in 1948, 1977 and 1984 recovered charred bones and an urn attributed to the Bronze Age. The site may have been adapted as a round cairn during that later period. Its surviving features therefore record more than one episode of prehistoric activity. The exact funerary ceremonies remain uncertain, but its structure and excavated deposits establish a long association with burial. Period: Neolithic with Bronze Age activity Grid reference: C8196008750 Protection: State Care and Scheduled Source: Department for Communities NI Sites and Monuments Record, https://apps.communities-ni.gov.uk/NISMR-PUBLIC/Default.aspx (Open Government Licence). Contains Department for Communities Historic Environment Division data licensed under the Open Government Licence.