Kite aerial photography award win

CHRISTY Lawless, Turlough, has won the 2015/16 Kite Aerial Photography Competition with the Scottish National Aerial Photography Scheme (SNAPS) for the second year in succession.

Taking part in the scheme’s competition were entrants from England, Scotland and Ireland.

The scheme was formerly known as the West Lothian Archaeological Trust. It was set up by the Trust as a non-invasive remote sensing method of recording and publishing archaeological heritage sites and monuments.

The Scottish National Aerial Photography Scheme (SNAPS) is also an associated partner to the ArchaeoLandscape (ArcLand), part of the European Union Cultural Programme.

The winning photograph is an aerial photograph taken of a ceremonial quadrivallated enclosure at Rathra, located 4k east of Castlerea, Co. Roscommon. It is a very large enclosure - 160 metres (525ft) in diameter N-S and 148 metres (486ft) diameter E-W.

The central area of enclosure, which has a hollowed mound (barrow), is surrounded by four substantial earthen banks.

Christy, using a kite and camera, took the prize-winning photograph at an altitude of c.450 ft.

The number of known quadrivallated enclosures is very low, and includes Rathra, Co. Roscommon, the Rath of the Synods at the Hill of Tara, Co. Meath, Tlachtga at the Hill of Ward, Co. Meath, and Rathdrinna in Co. Tipperary. These enclosures are classified by archaeologists as places of assembly and ceremonial sites.

This is a very impressive archaeological monument and this kite aerial photograph has done it justice, highlighting all its features, which includes three deep ditches, four high encircling banks and the burial mound inside the enclosure.

The photograph was taken as part of the annual archaeological ‘Above and Below’ conference which was held at the Rathcroghan Visitors Centre last April. The conference included a field trip to Rathra enclosure where a number of drones, kites and cameras were in action to capture the best possible image of the monument.