Irish's built heritage takes many forms and spans thousands of years. The built heritage is one of the most visible features of the Irish countryside, with forts, castles, churches and landed gentry's homes found in all areas of the island. Built heritage sites in Ireland fall under the remit of several national government organizations such as the OPW, the Heritage Council and local county councils. All historic buildings and sites in Ireland are protected by the National Monuments Act (1930) and the Ancient Monuments Protection Act (1882). Mesolithic built heritage Figure 1 Mount Sandel, Co. Derry The oldest known archaeological site in Ireland is the Mesolithic site of Mount Sandel in Coleraine, County Derry. Carbon dating has put the age of the site at 7,000 BC. However, although Mount Sandel is the oldest known site of human habitation in Ireland, it has no remains of buildings, only indications of where structures once stood, such as post holes left in the ground. Carbon dating of the Mount Sandel site places it in the Mesolithic era in Ireland, a time of hunter-gatherer peoples who moved in search of resources needed to survive. This movement of people meant that no major settlements or cities existed in that period. Neolithic building stock Figure 2 Newgrange, Co. Meath During the Neolithic period in Ireland we begin to see the construction of stone structures. Examples of these can be found at the Ceide Fields in County Mayo. and Newgrange in County Meath. The Ceide Fields are a series of dry stone walls, tombs and residential buildings discovered under a peat bog. The site and its structures have been dated to 3,500 BC...... middle of paper... Earth's heritage. They offer us an insight into what life was like in the period we have covered in this essay. They are physical connections to the past and are extremely relevant to our tourism and heritage sector today. Conservation and restoration can support job creation in the heritage and tourism sectors, as well as ensuring these structures are safe for future generations to see, study and understand Ireland's built heritage. Bibliography Aalen, AA, Whelan, K. and Stout, M. (2011) Atlas of the Irish Rural Landscape. Cork: Cork University Press.Craig, M. (1982) The Architecture of Ireland From Early Times to 1880. Dublin: Lambay BooksEdwards, N. (1990) The Archeology of Early Medieval Ireland. London: BT Batsford Ltd.Leask, HG, (1941) Irish castles and castle houses. Dundalk: Dundalgan Press Ltd.