Ringfort (Rath), Tullahennel, Co. Kerry

Co. Kerry |

Ringforts

Ringfort (Rath), Tullahennel, Co. Kerry

On a pastoral hillside in Tullahennel, County Kerry, a ringfort once stood about two-thirds of the way up a sloping field.

It is no longer there. The site has been levelled, leaving only the documentary record of something that was already quietly fading when surveyors first noted it down.

The fort was classified as a univallate rath, meaning it had a single enclosing earthen bank or rampart rather than the multiple concentric rings that marked higher-status or more defensible sites. Raths of this kind are the most common surviving monument type in Ireland, numbering in the tens of thousands, and were typically the enclosed farmsteads of early medieval families, dating broadly from around the fifth to the twelfth centuries. This particular example sat in a pastoral field, with a fieldbank running in a northwest to southeast direction immediately to its northeast, suggesting the long continuity of land boundaries in the area, older enclosures folded into later agricultural arrangements. C. Toal's North Kerry Archaeological Survey, published in 1995, recorded the rath at that point, but noted that the site had since been levelled, the earthworks graded back into the field around them.

Rated 0 out of 5

Visitor Notes

Review type for post source and places source type not found
Added by
Picture of Pete F
Pete F
IrishHistory.com is passionate about helping people discover and connect with the rich stories of their local communities.
Please use the form below to submit any photos you may have of Ringfort (Rath), Tullahennel, Co. Kerry. We're happy to take any suggested edits you may have too. Please be advised it will take us some time to get to these submissions. Thank you.
Name
Email
Message
Upload images/documents
Maximum file size: 100 MB
If you'd like to add an image or a PDF please do it here.

Advertisement