Fulacht fia, Curraghglass, Co. Tipperary

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Settlement Sites

Fulacht fia, Curraghglass, Co. Tipperary

Routine ploughing and reseeding of a field in Curraghglass brought something unexpected to the surface: the remains of a fulacht fia, a type of prehistoric cooking site found in considerable numbers across Ireland.

The disturbed ground revealed a low, horseshoe-shaped mound of burnt material measuring roughly eight metres north to south and twelve metres east to west, with what appears to be a trough area of six by five metres opening to the south. The whole thing sits on flat, poorly drained land beside a small stream, which is precisely where these sites tend to appear.

Fulachtaí fia, the plural form, are among the most common prehistoric monuments in Ireland, yet they remain quietly mysterious. The basic principle is well understood: stones were heated in a fire and dropped into a water-filled trough, bringing the water to a boil, most likely for cooking meat. The characteristic horseshoe or kidney shape of the mound comes from the gradual accumulation of fire-cracked, discarded stone around the trough over repeated use. Most date to the Bronze Age, roughly 1500 to 500 BC, though some are older. The proximity of a watercourse was essential, and here the stream to the south, which also marks the townland boundary with Lissagadda, would have supplied that need. The site was identified by David Broderick during fieldwalking in the area. Its immediate surroundings are layered with other remains: church ruins lie about 370 metres to the north, an enclosure sits 325 metres to the south, and Lackeen Castle, a tower house, stands some 720 metres to the east, though that latter structure belongs to a very different era entirely.

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