Medb's Cairn – Sligo, Ireland - Atlas Obscura

Medb's Cairn

This 30-foot pile of rocks may be the grave of a mythological Irish queen. 

203
653

Perched atop the monolithic Irish hill, Knocknarea, Medb’s Cairn is a 5,000 year old burial mound, although no one is quite sure whose it is. 

As the story goes, the fiery Irish queen Medb was felled by a piece of cheese flung from an expert’s sling. After her death she was rumored to have been buried atop Knocknarea. While the story of Medb’s burial is strictly legend, the massive cairn on top of the hill is very real. Unfortunately, while researchers have found a nearby depression from which most of the cairn-stones were likely quarried, no one has ever excavated the rock pile itself, so the location and identity of any body has never been discovered.

In partnership with KAYAK

Plan Your Trip

From Around the Web