Court cairn

The remains of the chamber of Teergonean court cairn

The Court cairn is a type of megalithic chamber tomb found in southwest Scotland (where they are known as clyde tombs) and western and northern Ireland (known as court tombs). Most court cairns appear to have been built in the early Neolithic period, around 3500 BCE, but many remained in use until as late as the Bronze Age transition, c. 2200 BCE. They are alternatively known as Clyde Carlingford tombs, horned cairns or court tombs.

Form and purpose

Court Cairns were rectangular burial chambers. They are distinguished by their oval-shaped court yard without a roof. Large slabs of rock were used to make walls - these were once covered by another large slab to create a roof.

They usually had two functions: the chambers to serve as a tomb and the court yard to accommodate a ritual. Objects were often buried with the deceased as the first megalithic farmers of this time believed in life after death. It was a bigger version of a dolmen

See also

• Cairn
• Chambered cairn
• Cloghanmore

External Links

• A beautifully illustrated guide to Megalithic Ireland

Template:Euro-archaeology-stub