Ballynoe Stone Circle

A large late Neolithic to Early Bronze Age stone circle near Ballynoe, County Down, Northern Ireland, dating to around 3000 BC. The circle measures 35 m in diameter and comprises over 50 upright stones up to 1.8 m tall. Excavations in 1937-38 by Professor Albert Giffen uncovered a partially kerbed long cairn 21 m long within the circle, containing burial cists with cremated remains of at least seven individuals including a young child. The site is believed to have served ceremonial, burial, and possibly astronomical purposes.