Enclosure, Caherweesheen, Co. Kerry

Co. Kerry |

Enclosures

Enclosure, Caherweesheen, Co. Kerry

On a low limestone reef rising from the grasslands of Caherweesheen in County Kerry, a cluster of ancient enclosures sits quietly beneath a tangle of scrub and small bushes, largely unnoticed by the wider world.

At least three circular earthwork enclosures, accompanied by two stone mounds and a short linear bank, occupy this natural platform of rock, and the combination of features on a single reef gives the site an unusual density and complexity that sets it apart from isolated examples elsewhere in the landscape.

The largest of the three enclosures measures fourteen metres across, with an interior space of roughly nine metres in diameter, defined by a substantial bank of earth and stone averaging two and a quarter metres in width. That bank sits about forty centimetres above the surrounding ground on its outer face, but drops a full metre and ten centimetres to the floor of the enclosure itself, creating a pronounced bowl effect that would have been considerably more dramatic before centuries of weathering and vegetation took their toll. A probable entrance, much eroded now, faces northward and measures about two metres wide. Circular enclosures of this type, built of earth and stone and enclosing a defined interior space, are broadly associated with early medieval settlement in Ireland, though their precise function varied widely, ranging from domestic farmsteads to enclosed ceremonial or burial sites. The reef location, elevated just enough to command wide views to the south and west, suggests that position and visibility mattered to whoever chose to build here. The survey work capturing these details was carried out by Michael Connolly across the Lee Valley area during 1996 and 1997.

The site is now heavily overgrown, and reading the archaeology through the scrub requires some patience. The enclosure banks are still legible underfoot and in profile, and the contrast between the outer and inner ground levels remains perceptible even where vegetation obscures the stonework.

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