Settlement cluster, Lisheens, Co. Wicklow

Co. Wicklow |

Settlement Sites

Settlement cluster, Lisheens, Co. Wicklow

In the forested hillside at Lisheens in County Wicklow, at least fourteen huts sit pressed together on a slope facing west to north-west, largely swallowed by trees.

A cluster of conjoined huts of this size is not the kind of thing that appears in most accounts of the Irish landscape, and the heavy afforestation that now covers the area means the settlement has been effectively removed from casual view for a long time. What survives is a compact, interlocking arrangement of structures, the kind of grouping that suggests not a solitary dwelling but a community, however small or temporary, that once organised its living space with some deliberateness.

The phrase "conjoined huts" points to a form of settlement in which individual shelters share walls or are built directly against one another, a pattern seen in upland and marginal landscapes across Ireland and often associated with seasonal or semi-permanent occupation. The west to north-west orientation of the slope at Lisheens is worth noting: it is not the most sheltered or agriculturally favoured aspect, which raises questions about why people settled here, whether for transhumance, for proximity to particular resources, or simply because this was the land available to them. The site was recorded by Sullivan in 1994, and the fourteen-hut count should be understood as a minimum rather than a definitive total, given how much of the area remains under dense tree cover.

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 Settlement cluster, Lisheens, Co. Wicklow. 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