Enclosure, Erneen, Co. Kerry

Co. Kerry |

Enclosures

Enclosure, Erneen, Co. Kerry

On a west-facing slope in south-west Kerry, half-consumed by bog, a small oval enclosure sits quietly above a river valley.

What makes it worth pausing over is the pragmatic adjustment built into its very fabric: the western portion of the interior has been deliberately raised by about half a metre to level out the hillside gradient, a small but telling detail that speaks to whoever once made use of this place. The wall itself, a roughly constructed drystone construction now largely collapsed, still protrudes just above the surface of the surrounding bog, with large boulders worked into the eastern section to reinforce it.

The enclosure measures roughly nine metres east to west and just under seven metres north to south, an oval footprint modest enough to suggest it was never intended as a major settlement. Within the southern sector there is a hut site, the kind of simple circular or subrectangular stone-built shelter found across Irish uplands and associated with seasonal agricultural or pastoral activity. Around thirty metres to the north, a relict field boundary, meaning the overgrown remains of an old divisional wall or earthwork, hints that this corner of Erneen was once part of a more organised working landscape, one that has since been reclaimed almost entirely by heather and peat. Drystone enclosures of this type are notoriously difficult to date without excavation, as the building technique changed little across many centuries of upland farming life in Kerry.

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, Erneen, 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