DIGGING DRUMANAGH  
Heritage Guide No. 107
Drumanagh promontory fort is a nationally important Iron Age archaeological site and is of international significance in terms of Ireland’s relationship with the Roman world. Located between the villages of Loughshinny and Rush, the site is accessed to the south by a laneway from the road (R128). In the ownership of Fingal County Council since 2016, the 46 acres of grassy headland with views northwards to the Mourne Mountains and southwards along the Dublin coastline to the Wicklow Mountains are popular with dog-walkers. Visitors make for the Martello tower through gaps in the three closely spaced banks and ditches that extend for almost 300m across the neck of the promontory, often unaware of their significance or of what lies beneath their feet. 

Promontory forts are generally associated with the Iron Age (c. 500 BC–AD 400). Drumanagh not only is prominent in terms of being an identifiable landmark along the coastline but also is located close to the copper ore deposits of Loughshinny. Mined in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, this resource is highly likely to have been the focus for earlier activity. Links between nearby Lambay Island, the coastline, Wales and Scotland indicate the emergence of a coastal and island network of communication and exchange of which Drumanagh is at the heart.

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