Ringfort - cashel

The National Monuments Service's description

Internal diam. c. 25m
Situated on a S facing slope overlooking Castlemaine Harbour, this cashel has been seriously interfered with and modified since the early 19th century when it was shown on the 1st edition of the OS map as a circular univallate enclosure. The enclosing wall has for the most part been reduced to a band of stone collapse which ranges in width from 3.6 to 7.5m and which is up to 1.4m high. However, 2 very short sections of the outer wall-face are exposed at SSE and NNW, and a 10m long arc of what is probably the inner wall-face is exposed at NW. A modern, but now disused, sub-rectangular enclosure has been superimposed upon these remains and is the most obvious feature of the site today. A N-S laneway runs alongside the E edge of the cashel and the earlier wall has been partly removed in this sector. The modern enclosure is defined to N by an E-W wall which surmounts the debris of the cashel wall, to W by a straight N-S wall which excludes a small portion of the cashel interior from the modern enclosure, and to S by an E-W wall which was built on top of the inner edge of the ruined cashel wall. The W end of the modern wall at S exhibits a regular curve and may follow the line of the inner face of the cashel. A large quantity of stone collapse fills the interior and the outlines of about 3 circular buildings were formerly visible (local information). Much stone was removed, however, for use as building material and no features are now discernible in the interior.
About 100m to SW of the cashel is what appears to be a small enclosure, now covered with impenetrable vegetation. It measures c. 17.7m E-W and 15.3m N-S overall and is defined by a stony bank at least 2.6m wide and .55m high. In the NE corner of the same field is a roughly rectangular enclosure of unknown function and date. It is defined to N and E by the laneway and to W and S by low banks of earth and stone. It measures 14m N-S and 9.1m E-W internally and the bank is 1.4m wide and .55m high.

The above description is derived from J. Cuppage, ‘Corca Dhuibhne. Dingle Peninsula archaeological survey. Ballyferriter. Oidhreacht Chorca Dhuibhne’ (1986), no. 579. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research.

Date of upload: 7 August 2013