Archaeologists have uncovered rare Neolithic tombs in Maree in Oranmore dating back almost 6,000 years
Researchers believe the site at Prospecthill represents the only known example in Ireland where a court tomb and a portal tomb have been found together
It provides a rare opportunity to examine different approaches to burial, ritual and monument building in the Ireland of the Stone Age.
The excavations at the prehistoric site also reveal new evidence about the earliest farming communities in the west of Ireland.
The excavation is being carried out by researchers and students from University of Galway, alongside community volunteers, and hosted by the local landowner the Burke family
Project co-lead, lecturer Dr Noel McCarthy told Bernadette Prendergast the tombs and the artefacts combine to make this a groundbreaking archaeological discovery
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Archaeologists have rediscovered a ‘lost’ Neolithic tomb and located a second, previously unidentified, tomb during excavations at a prehistoric site revealing new evidence about the earliest farming communities in the west of Ireland.
Led by Dr Michelle Comber and Dr Noel McCarthy of the Discipline of Archaeology at University of Galway, the excavation in the Maree area of Co Galway has revealed two different types of megalithic tombs dating back almost 6,000 years.
Researchers believe the site represents the only known example in Ireland where a court tomb and a portal tomb are found together, offering important new evidence about the people who built them during the early Neolithic period - the first farmers in this part of the world.
Court tombs were burial monuments with an open area or ‘court’ where ritual/ceremonial activities took place, while portal tombs were stone-built burial chambers marked by a large capstone.
The discovery of these two monument types side-by-side provides a rare opportunity to examine different approaches to burial, ritual and monument building in the Ireland of the Stone Age.
Project co-lead, Dr Michelle Comber, lecturer in Archaeology at University of Galway, said: “The chance to find and excavate sites like these within the area of our larger research project provides a golden opportunity to locate - and attempt to understand - the first farmers of this place. Working here with colleagues, students, and community members, playing a part in such important discoveries, is thrilling both professionally and personally.”
“The size and scale of the tombs, and the effort required to construct them, reflect a sizeable community living in and farming this part of coastal Galway. Their location right next to each other represents a meeting of two traditions, raising new questions about the nature of that interaction.”
Project co-lead, Dr Noel McCarthy, lecturer in Archaeology at University of Galway said: “The opportunity to investigate a site like this is not something that occurs very often. Discovering the second monument has added a layer of complexity that informs our understanding of culture and society in the Neolithic period and beyond. Whole communities came together to create these monuments in what must have been great displays of group identity and religious expression.”
Once thought completely destroyed, the court tomb at Prospecthill, Maree, has been uncovered by University of Galway archaeological excavations this summer. One of the southernmost examples of this type of tomb, it is also one of the largest discovered, at approximately 30m in length.
Right beside the court tomb, and previously unrecorded as a burial monument, the remains of a large portal tomb have also been discovered. Its impressive capstone measures almost 4m in length and 1m thick, weighing an estimated 14 tonnes.
Archaeologists on the site also identified a large bedrock pit in which the portal tomb was originally constructed. This enabled the exceptional preservation of the original burial deposits, providing a rare opportunity to investigate evidence from the monument's earliest use, offering fresh insights into how these communities honoured and buried their dead.
The excavation uncovered stone tools, prehistoric pottery and cremated bone, including a small amethyst pendant from the portal tomb. While quartz beads are known from a few megalithic sites, nothing like this amethyst pendant is known from anywhere in Ireland.
Both tomb types are dated to the early Neolithic period and, despite their name, both tombs represent much more than just places of burial. They were the focus of communal gatherings and rituals, some of which involved human remains and ancestral interaction.
The discoveries have been made as part of the University of Galway research project, MAREE – Land Use Through Time, which is exploring how people lived and used the landscape in the area over thousands of years.
The latest discoveries build on the project's first excavation season in 2025, when archaeologists confirmed Rathgurreen Ringfort as a high-status Early Medieval settlement occupied by rulers and nobles. That excavation uncovered links to trade and contact extending to Rome, Scotland, France and Scandinavia.
This year's discoveries have extended the research project's timeline back into early prehistory, offering new evidence about the origins of farming, settlement and territoriality in the west of Ireland. This is key to understanding the long and continuing relationship between people and land in this landscape.
The excavation is being carried out by researchers and students from University of Galway, alongside community volunteers, and hosted by the local landowner the Burke family, with support from the Royal Irish Academy and survey work by the Discovery Programme, the national archaeological research body supported by the Heritage Council.
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