Enclosure, An Charraig, Co. Kerry

Co. Kerry |

Enclosures

Enclosure, An Charraig, Co. Kerry

On the western slopes of Reenconnell, overlooking Smerwick Harbour in Co. Kerry, there is an archaeological site that takes some patience to see at all.

What was once a univallate enclosure, meaning a circular settlement defined by a single enclosing bank or wall, roughly 25 metres across internally, has been reduced to little more than a faint ripple in the ground. A field fence now bisects it from north to south, and the remains of the enclosing bank rise no higher than about 20 centimetres above the surrounding land. Most visitors would walk straight across it without noticing.

The site carries the Irish name Lios Gort na Rátha, and it once contained a clochaun, a small dry-stone corbelled hut of a type found across the Dingle Peninsula, which stood within the eastern sector of the enclosure's interior. By 1845, when Ordnance Survey memoirs recorded it, that structure had already been reduced to a single foot in height. It has since disappeared entirely. The enclosure itself was clearly shown on the Ordnance Survey maps of that era, and its deterioration since then reflects a pattern common across this part of Kerry, where early medieval or prehistoric settlement features have been quietly absorbed into the working agricultural landscape over generations. The site was surveyed and recorded in J. Cuppage's 1986 archaeological survey of the Corca Dhuibhne region, a detailed study of the Dingle Peninsula that documented hundreds of such features across the area.

What lingers here is less a monument than an absence. The outline of the enclosure is vaguely discernible if you know where to look and the light is low and raking, the kind of condition that reveals earthworks which are otherwise invisible. The western slopes of Reenconnell frame a view down to Smerwick Harbour, the same harbour that appears repeatedly in the turbulent history of late sixteenth-century Munster. The site itself is quiet, unenclosed by any heritage infrastructure, and largely unannounced.

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 Enclosure, An Charraig, 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