Kiln - lime, Fussa, Co. Kerry

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Kilns

Kiln – lime, Fussa, Co. Kerry

Tucked into a small quarry just off a trackway that heads north-east from Ardtully House in County Kerry, a remarkably well-preserved lime kiln survives from the mid to late nineteenth century, its south-facing façade still dressed in neat coursed ashlar, the kind of careful stonework that speaks to a substantial investment of labour and intent.

Lime kilns were the workhorse infrastructure of improving agriculture across rural Ireland; limestone and fuel were loaded in at the top, burned together over many hours, and the resulting quicklime was drawn out at the base to be spread on acidic farmland, mortared into walls, or whitewashed onto buildings. This one is larger and more carefully built than many of its kind.

The kiln's central recess, roughly two and a half metres wide, two and a half metres tall, and three and a half metres deep, is formed by a segmental arch, with a semi-circular opening cut through the rear wall. A steep path climbs the eastern side of the quarry to reach the top of the structure, where the circular funnel, brick-lined and fitted with an iron rim, measures about 1.8 metres in diameter and splays outward towards the base, funnelling the charge of stone and fuel downward as it burned. Immediately to the south-east stands a separate rectangular building, roughly ten metres by six, gable-ended and now roofless, constructed from random rubble rather than the ashlar of the kiln itself. It has two door openings of notably different widths in its north and west walls, suggesting it served some functional purpose connected to the kiln's operation, perhaps for storing fuel, tools, or the processed lime before it was carted away.

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