Court Tomb, Ballymacdermot, Newry, Co Down

This is a Neolithic court tomb, also known as a horned cairn, dating from approximately 5000 to 2500 BC. It is prominently situated on a southeastern-facing slope of Ballymacdermot Mountain, to the east of the road. The cairn consists of a trapezoidal platform constructed from rubble fieldstones, now grassed over and aligned with the slope. A half-circle of upright quarried granite slabs defines an open area, or ‘court,’ at the northwest end. Within this court lies a stone-lined chamber set into the middle of the cairn, aligned with the cairn’s axis. This passage is divided into three smaller chambers by granite slabs, with traces of the granite lintels that originally covered them still visible. The original cairn was higher, covering all but the court area at the front.