Beside the rath: excavations at Raheenagurren West, Co. Wexford

Raheenagurren, 2 km south-east of the town of Gorey, Co. Wexford, has long been subdivided into two separate townlands.While the exact meaning of the name is not clear, ‘Raheen’ refers to a rath or ringfort.These are typical settlement sites of the early medieval period, broadly dating from between AD 500 and 1100.They are well known in most parts of Ireland, and about 150 of them survive i…