Enclosure, Derrysallagh, Co. Kerry
Co. Kerry |
Enclosures
Tucked within a larger enclosure in the townland of Derrysallagh in south-west Kerry, there is a secondary space that raises more questions than the available evidence can answer.
A roughly oval area, measuring around 6.7 metres east to west and 5.2 metres north to south, sits hard against the inner face of the main enclosing wall along its southern arc. Its remaining boundary, running from the south-west to the south-east, is formed by a collapsed drystone wall, now standing only about half a metre high and roughly the same in thickness. What makes it quietly curious is that this inner wall is built in exactly the same manner as the outer one, suggesting both were either planned together or executed by the same hands at the same time.
Enclosures of this kind, defined by drystone construction, are a recurring feature of the Kerry landscape and often date to the early medieval period, though they can be difficult to date without excavation. They served various purposes, from farmsteads to places associated with pastoral activity or even spiritual use. The presence of a subdivided interior, a smaller compartment carved out against the southern wall, hints at a more complex use of the space than a simple field boundary would require. Whether it once sheltered animals, housed a structure, or served some other purpose entirely, the stonework itself holds no inscription and offers no obvious answer.