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Not far from the south kerbs of Cairn H is the remains of a dolmen or stone table of some kind. Today the monument appears as a jumble of stone in the bog. This is a most interesting little structure. There are four chunks of sandstone, small boulders, that are set out in a cross shape on the cardinal directions. Within this may be the remains of a small cist, at least three limestone slabs can be seen. This was covered by a large flat slab of limestone, which was smashed sometime before 1911. This unobtrusive little monument may be the original setting out position for the astronomical observations and alignments on the ridge of Carrowkeel. Small table type structures may have been fixed positions for observations of sun and moon sets, and may be older than the cairns.
Cairns H and G, with the possible remains of a dolmen in the foreground. There is also a flat slab on the west side of Cairn G which may have performed a similar function as an observation platform. This large slab may cover a cist, similar to the cist near Cairn K. It is interesting that the three cairns have possibly earlier megalithic structures beside them. Beside the Cairn H dolmen is a green mound with several large limestone flags which Macalister thought were natural, but looks to be another monument of some kind. Close by is the beautiful erratic boulder shown in the picture below. This stone is natural, but falls on a line with the chamber of Cairn G and Doomore: the axis of the midsummer sunset. The stone may function as a sundial and cast shadows on H and G at sunrise on the winter solstice and November/Fuburary cross quarter days. |
The large erratic boulder near Cairns G and H would have stood here long before the monuments were constructed, and probably casts a shadow on the nearby cairns at certain sunrises. It is a similar size to the Stirring Rock in the valley to the south of Cairn F. |
