Fairy forts — so many still here and still relevant today

How many fairy forts in Ireland? Somewhere between 45,000 and 60,000 is a very rough estimate, but in all probability there are many more, given the speed with which our lush vegetation covers up everything according to a new book, Irish Fairy Forts: Portals to the Past

Rath Mór ringfort near Rathmore. Pictures: Richard Mills

What are fairy forts?

You will glimpse them, perhaps quite by chance, as you drive along country roads. Unusual grassy circles; strange, tree-covered mounds in the centre of otherwise smoothly-tilled fields; the road making a sudden and unexpected diversion around an obstacle that certainly isn’t a rock before returning to its straight route.