Eightercua ) is a four-stone
alignment
Alignment may refer to:
Archaeology
* Alignment (archaeology), a co-linear arrangement of features or structures with external landmarks
* Stone alignment, a linear arrangement of upright, parallel megalithic standing stones
Biology
* Structu ...
(stone-row)
Megalithic tomb
A megalith is a large stone that has been used to construct a prehistoric structure or monument, either alone or together with other stones. There are over 35,000 in Europe alone, located widely from Sweden to the Mediterranean sea.
The ...
, located 1.5 km south-south-east of
Waterville,
County Kerry
County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the co ...
,
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
. The tallest stone reaches 9 feet in height, and the alignment streaches for twenty five feet in an east-west direction. Surrounding artifacts, including remains of a possible tomb and an ancient enclosure, suggest that the site had a ritual purpose at one time. Eightercua is thought to originate from circa. 1700 BC, and by tradition is the burial place of
Scéine, wife of the leader of the
Milesian invaders,
Amergin mac Míled.
The site features four tall slabs from 1.8m to 3m high running east and west. From one stone a slab runs south and could be part of a tomb chamber or cist set in an oval cairn 1m high.
References
External links
Images of Eightercua
Megalithic monuments in Ireland
Archaeological sites in County Kerry
Tombs in the Republic of Ireland
{{Ireland-archaeology-stub