But that dark spread in the soil, roughly four metres by five metres where the plough has caught it, is almost certainly the remnant of a fulacht fia, a type of prehistoric cooking site found in large numbers across Ireland. The basic principle was straightforward: stones were heated in a fire and then dropped into a water-filled trough, bringing the water to a boil and keeping it there long enough to cook meat. The broken, fire-cracked stones that resulted were piled nearby, and it is precisely these burnt mounds that survive in the ground for thousands of years after the fires went out.

What makes Inchanappa particularly interesting is the concentration of sites here. This fulacht fia is one of three recorded in the same field, clustered on a south-east facing slope of low rising ground. It sits higher up the slope than at least one of its neighbours, which appears to have been largely ploughed out already. The site itself has only been partially exposed: the northern half came to light through recent ploughing, while the southern half remained undisturbed beneath the unploughed ground. How far the site extends to the south is not yet known, meaning a portion of the original mound likely survives intact below the surface. The presence of multiple fulachta fiadh in such close proximity suggests this stretch of Wicklow countryside saw repeated use over time, though whether that reflects seasonal activity, a favoured water source nearby, or simple convenience is a question the landscape alone cannot answer.