Milestone, adjacent to 12 Castle Road, at a gateway to Shane's Castle Park, Antrim, Co Antrim

This is a mid-19th century cast iron milepost, an increasingly rare example of a once-common roadside marker, with only three others surviving in the Randalstown ward. The milestone consists of two angled sides topped with a triangular shape; it measures 48.5 cms wide. Each of the three faces is inscribed in raised lettering, showing the following locations and distances in miles: 'Randalstown 4 miles; Antrim 1 mile; Belfast 18'. The surfaces are painted white with black raised lettering and borders. The milepost is situated on a footpath alongside the road, set against a boundary wall of basalt rubble belonging to the Shane's Castle estate, immediately adjacent to the eastern gate pier of an entrance gateway. Although the precise date of construction is unknown, similar mileposts appear on the Ordnance Survey map of 1902, suggesting a likely date from the 1860s. The milepost is of industrial archaeological interest due to its rarity and significance as a remnant of transport infrastructure. It contributes to the group value of the Shane’s Castle Park estate.