Children's burial ground

The National Monuments Service's description

Children's Burial Ground: Abutting a field boundary at W, this site is located in rough pasture and overlooks the estuary of the Inny river at S. It is oval-shaped in plan, with overall dimensions of 29m N-S x 34m E-W, and is defined at E and S by a poorly preserved earth and stone bank, which measures .6m high and 3.5m wide. The overgrown interior slopes down to S, where most of the grave-markers are concentrated. A large number of these markers are now prostrate, but those still standing are generally aligned N-S. Centrally located is a leacht-type feature, which is constructed of coursed drystone masonry intermixed with a large quantity of quartz stones. It is rectangular in outline and measures 3.2m N-S x 2.45m E-W. An irregular mound of loose stones occurs 1.2m to SE. Occurring in the SE quadrant, close to the edge of the site, is a large prostrate slab; 1.6m x .4m x .35m thick. Children were still being buried here in the early twentieth century (local information).

The above description is derived from A. O'Sullivan and J. Sheehan (compilers), 'The Iveragh peninsula: an archaeological survey of South Kerry'. Cork University Press (1996), no. 1032. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research.

Date of upload: 30 July 2013