stones historical antrim

At Drumaquern, Kilraughts about 5 miles from Ballymoney can be seen the Chi-Rho Stone, the most ancient Christian Symbol in the Borough. The stone, which dates from about the 4th century and is unique in Ireland, has the Chi-Rho sigh on one side and a reserved Rho on the other....

Rising picturesquely above a gorse-grown rocky outcrop, on the crest of a hill commanding a broad sweep of countryside, this shapely 'hole stone' is a good example of its type and a familiar landmark in the locality. Typical of places where the dumping of refuse is specifically prohibited, the immediate area abounds in unsightly litter. A tapered dolerite slab about 5 feet high and 21/2 feet wide at the base, it is pierced with a circular hole 3 inches in diameter, neatly cut, with smooth...

Its capstone is supported by three uprights, but on e of these-and the capstone-were erected in the 19th century to make it look like a dolmen. However, the monument itself is genuinely Stone Age, for two of the uprights supporting the capstone are the portals of the forecourt of a court-tomb of around 3000 B.C., which gave access to a burial chamber of three sections in a cairn bordered with kerb-stones. Easier to find than this court-tomb, which is known locally as the Broad Stone, is anothe...

Visit the love stone with your true love. It is a tapered dolerite slab about 5 feet high by 21 feet, 2 inches wide with a circular hole, of some 3 to 4 inches cut into it. Evidence of tree planting nearby from 1791. In the last century the 'Holestone' Lovestone was used by trothplighting couples to solemnise their marriage....