You will find Aideen's Grave located towards the summit of the Howth Castle Demesne, amongst the Rhododendrons. From the entrance gates at the Howth Road, follow the avenue up to the Deer Park Hotel and Café Bar. Follow the gravel path to the rear of the café bar on the right-hand side of the building and follow the signs to Aideen's Grave. The trail becomes uneven as you walk through the woodland so appropriate footwear is advisable.
The following historic information about Aideen's Grave was kindly provided by community archaeology group, Resurrecting Monuments. They have undertaken a large research project to discover more about this significant historic monument. Read more about their research here: Resurrecting Monuments - Aideen's Grave.
Aideen’s Grave is an early Neolithic Portal tomb, often referred to as Dolmens. The earliest Portal tombs in Ireland date from around 3800 BC, the early Neolithic period. Aideen’s Grave portal tomb is situated by a pathway under tree cover at the southern edge of Deer Park golf course at the foot of Muck Rock on the north side of Howth Head. The stone used to construct the tomb is local Cambrian quartzite rock probably sourced from rocks that became dislodged form the nearby steep cliff face of Muck Rock. The tomb remains consist of a single chamber (L 2.6m; Wth 1.1m). This is indicated by two portals (H 2.75m and 2.45m respectively). The door stone has partially collapsed into the chamber. The large roof stone (L 5.2m; Wth 4.2m; D 1.9m) still rests on the upper edge of the portals above the collapsed chamber.
The tomb is known as Aideen’s Grave as folklore tells of how Étaín Fholthinn (daughter of a local chieftain named Aengus) married Oscar, son of Oisín and grandson of Fionn MacCumhaill. On hearing of Oscar’s death at the Battle of Gabhra (near the Hill of Tara) in 284AD, she died of a broken heart and Oisín caused the tomb to be built in her honour
Aideen's Grave was immortalised by the great Irish poet and antiquarian Samuel Ferguson in the 1860s.
“They heaved the stone; they heaped the cairn.
Said Ossian, In a queenly grave
We leave her, ‘mong her fields of fern,
Between the cliff and wave.
…
A clear pure air pervades the scene,
In loneliness and awe secure.
Meet spot to sepulchre a queen
Who in her life was pure.
…
And here hard by her natal bower,
On lone Ben Edar’s side, we strive
With lifted rock and sign of power
To keep her name alive.”
The Cromlech on Howth – Samuel Ferguson, 1861
