Dún Conor is a stone

ringfort Ringforts, ring forts or ring fortresses are circular fortified settlements that were mostly built during the Bronze Age up to about the year 1000. They are found in Northern Europe, especially in Ireland. There are also many in South Wales ...

(cashel) and

national monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a spec ...

located on Inishmaan, Ireland.

Location

Dún Conor is located at the centre of Inishmaan, at the island's highest point.

History

The fort probably dates back to the first millennium AD. At that time, sea levels were lower and the Aran Islands part of the mainland, and the other forts like

Dún Aengus A dun is an ancient or medieval fort. In Ireland and Britain it is mainly a kind of hillfort and also a kind of Atlantic roundhouse. Etymology The term comes from Irish language, Irish ''dún'' or Scottish Gaelic ''dùn'' (meaning "fort"), ...

were not on the coast. They have been heavily damaged by time and the sea, but Dún Conor's central location has protected it. The name means "Conor's Fort;" legends link it to Conor, son of Hua Mór and brother of

Aengus In Irish mythology, Aengus or Óengus is one of the Tuatha Dé Danann and probably originally a god associated with youth, love,Ó hÓgáin, Dáithí. ''Myth, Legend & Romance: An encyclopedia of the Irish folk tradition''. Prentice-Hall Press, ...

. The size of the forts on the Aran Islands gave rise to the legends of the

Fir Bolg In medieval Irish myth, the Fir Bolg (also spelt Firbolg and Fir Bholg) are the fourth group of people to settle in Ireland. They are descended from the Muintir Nemid, an earlier group who abandoned Ireland and went to different parts of Europe. ...

John O'Donovan John O'Donovan may refer to: *John O'Donovan (scholar) (1806–1861), Irish language scholar and place-name expert *John O'Donovan (politician) (1908–1982), Irish TD and Senator *John O'Donovan (police commissioner) (1858–1927), New Zealand pol ...

visited Dún Conor in 1839. The clocháns in the interior were restored in the 1880s.

Description

A stone ringfort with an irregular elliptical shape, internally measuring about N-S and E-W; although smaller than

, it has thicker walls, up to in places. It is built in four terraces with internal stairs. The west wall is built atop a natural internal cliff; the other sides are guarded by a second wall, with a

bastion A bastion or bulwark is a structure projecting outward from the curtain wall of a fortification, most commonly angular in shape and positioned at the corners of the fort. The fully developed bastion consists of two faces and two flanks, with fi ...

in the northeast. File:InishmaanRingfort1.jpg File:InishmaanRingfort2.jpg File:Dún Chonchúir1.jpg File:Dún Chonchúir2.jpg File:Dún Chonchúir3.jpg File:Dún Chonchúir4.jpg File:Dún Chonchúir5.jpg File:Dún Chonchúir6.jpg File:Dún Chonchúir7.jpg

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dún Conor Aran Islands National monuments in County Galway Archaeological sites in County Galway