Hut site, Barnastooka, Co. Kerry

Co. Kerry |

Settlement Sites

Hut site, Barnastooka, Co. Kerry

On a south-facing slope at Barnastooka in County Kerry, the footprint of a small circular structure sits quietly on a level terrace, its collapsed walls now barely distinguishable from the surrounding ground.

What makes it worth pausing over is its scale: the interior of this sub-circular hut measured just 2.06 metres north to south and 2.7 metres east to west, a space roughly the size of a large wardrobe laid flat. The walls themselves, though fallen, were up to two metres thick, meaning the structure was built with considerable solidity relative to its modest internal dimensions.

The site came to light in 2010 during archaeological testing carried out in connection with the Barnastooka Wind Farm development, work documented by Cummins that year. It is classified as a possible monument, a cautious designation that reflects genuine uncertainty about date and function. Hut sites of this kind, sometimes associated with seasonal pastoral activity or with much earlier prehistoric settlement, are not uncommon across the Kerry uplands, but they are easily overlooked and frequently undated without further excavation. The combination of thick rubble walling and a compact internal area is consistent with a simple shelter rather than a permanent dwelling, though without more investigation the picture remains incomplete.

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