Ringfort - unclassified

The National Monuments Service's description

In pasture, 125m E of Morningstar River that forms townland boundary with Ballinvana. Adjacent to old road from Knocklong to Kilmallock with crossing point over the river annotated 'Doon Ford' on 1840 ed. OSi 6-inch map lies 140m to W. Knocktoran (Cnoc Teorann/Hill of the boundary) House stands 110m to SE. Annotated ‘Ahadoon’ on the 1840 ed. OSi 6-inch map where it is depicted as a circular shaped platform defined by a scarp, interior planted with trees, intersected at NNE by post-1700 field boundary running roughly E-W. Shown on the 1897 ed. OSi 25-inch map as a raised sub-circular shaped area (dims. c. 24m N-S x 26m E-W) defined by a scarp, incorporated into a post-1700 field boundary from SW-W-N- NE with outbuildngs of Knocktoran House to E. In 1840 the Ordnance Survey described this monument as Ahadoon meaning ‘Áth a’ Dúin, ford of the fort’, a fort in the townland of Knocktoran (OSNB Abbeyfeale to Bruree, 1232; OSL Vol. 2, 270).
Possible platform ringfort or motte castle described by Westropp (1917-19, 176) as follows; ‘It is 16 feet [4.8m] to 18 feet [5.4m] high, the top girt by a low ring, 8 feet [2.4m] to 10 feet [3m] thick, and rarely 3 feet [0.9m] high. The platform inside this measures 60 feet [18.2m] across, or 123 [37.5m] feet at the base. There are traces of a fosse, but too defaced to be measured. The old road runs from it to the ford, westward down the slope'. Monument visible as a tree-covered earthwork on Digital Globe orthoimage taken between 2011-13 and on Google Earth orthoimages.

See attached Google Earth orthoimage.

Compiled by: Fiona Rooney

Date of upload: 23 June 2021

References

Westropp, T.J. 1917-19 The Earthworks, Traditions, and the Gods of South-Eastern Co. Limerick, Especially from Knocklong to Temair Erann. Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy: Archaeology, Culture, History, Literature 34, 127-183.

OSL - Ordnance Survey Letters. Letters written by members of the Ordnance Survey's 'Topographical Department' (T. O'Conor, A. O'Curry, E. Curry, J. O'Donovan and P. O'Keeffe) sent to headquarters from the field (1834-41). MSS in Royal Irish Academy.

OSNB - Ordnance Survey Name Books. Pro-forma books arranged by Civil Parish for recording townland and other name-forms and compiled in the course of the OS 6-inch survey 1824-1841. The name books also include minor names and incidental references to antiquities. National Archives of Ireland.