Ecclesiastical enclosure

The National Monuments Service's description

Located on a slight rise SE of Reenard Point, this overgrown site lies close to the shoreline of Valencia harbour. Field boundaries define its E and S sides, while the limits of the surrounding cultivated field delineate its unenclosed W and N sectors. The overall dimensions of the site are 28.7m N-S x 50m E-W, and within this is a burial area, a stone cross and a pair of conjoined huts.
The burial area occupies a low mound in the SE sector of the site and features numerous upright slabs, some of which are arranged in regular rows. Quartz stones and pebbles occur among these. Perched on the W edge of the mound, and inclining heavily in that direction, is a narrow stone cross with rudimentary arms. It stands 1.4m high, its shaft measures .24m at base and the maximum width across its arms is .31m. The arms are positioned below the mid-point of the shaft. At the NW end of the site, close to an area of rock outcrop, are the foundations of a pair of conjoined huts. The hut at N, with an internal diameter of 5.2m, is the better preserved. It features an entrance at N and its dry stone-built walls, now largely overgrown, measure 1.2m wide. The hut at S is poorly defined and appears to have an internal diameter of 6.5m. Its stone wall can only be partially traced through the sod-cover. An oval-shaped mound of stony composition, 4.7m to W, may be the remnants of a third hut. It measures 4.1m in length. Skinner (ITA) records a souterrain close to this site, but it is not remembered locally.

The above description is derived from O'Sullivan, A. and Sheehan, J. (compilers) 'The Iveragh peninsula: an archaeological survey of South Kerry'. Cork University press. (1996), no. 965. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research.

Date of upload: 13 June 2013