Ringfort - rath

The National Monuments Service's description

In rough pasture, in the N quadrant of an archaeological complex (LI048-034006-/042-) located on the 'Supposed Site of Temaír Erann', which was the ancient cemetery of the Ernai tribe on Slievereagh (Sliabh Riabhach) (Westropp 1919, 9; Westropp 1917-19, 179; Westropp 1918, 111). Bivallate ringfort stands inside a large field system (LI048-034001-), ringfort (LI048-034036-) immediately to N and ringfort (LI048-034008-) 30m to S.
Listed as Ringfort No. 8 in the ‘Northern Group’ of forts by Ó Ríordáin (1940, 128-132) who excavated the monuments on this hillside between 1934-5. Ó Ríordáin described the site as follows; 'This fort, as already mentioned, could before excavation be traced on the ground surface on the eastern side only and there only for one-third of its circumference. On excavation we found that, while the defences were more complex on the eastern side, the fort had been enclosed also on the western side, though here only a single fosse was found. On the eastern side we found three fosses. The middle fosse is the one which encircled the fort. The outer fosse as well as the outer bank represent, I believe, later strengthening on this side. The slight inner fosse is less easy of explanation as it, in all probability, never had a bank on the inside, but may have been dug at the foot of the bank outside it. The feature was evidently considered necessary on the upper side of the fort only, where it would serve to drain off the wash from the bank'.
Excavations of the ringfort (diam. c. 30m) revealed a possible entrance at S indicated by 2 postholes (5 feet [1.5m] apart) (ibid. 130), two souterrains (LI048-034032/033-), two house sites and a wattle structure. The house sites were described by Ó Ríordáin (ibid. 129-30) as; 'Two groups of post-holes in Ring 8 give evidence of the existence of houses; one group east of the northern souterrain [LI048-034033-] and one west of the northern end of the southern souterrain [LI048-034032-]. The former group enclosed a hearth of stones laid close together so as to give a flat surface about 5 feet [1.5m] by 4 feet [1.2m]. The absence of charcoal, not only over the hearth but over the whole area, suggested that habitation here must have been for a brief period and in no case intense. The two rows of post-holes on either side of the hearth give a roughly rectangular house approximately 9 feet [2.7m] by 6 feet [1.8m], while, by including the other post-holes and wall-groove of the group, we get a second larger (14 feet by 9 feet) room. The second group of post-holes does not show any such arrangement as would easily suggest a house plan. An interesting discovery to the east of the southern souterrain [LI048-034032-] was the site of a wattle building. To the east of the southern souterrain was the site of a wattle building. This in the main consisted of an arc of two lines (in part four lines) of small stake-holes. The arc was about 14 feet [4.26m] in length and formed about one-fourth of a circle. From its southern end a further series of stake-holes gave the impression of a straight wall running southwards for a distance of 13 feet [3.96m], while a further medley of holes to the west did not help to make the plan intelligible but made it apparent that more than one house of this type had existed here'. The E curving arc of the two banks and intervening fosse are visible on Digital Globe orthoimage taken between 2011-13 and on Google Earth orthoimages.

See attached plans from Ó Ríordáin and Google Earth orthoimages.

Compiled by: Fiona Rooney

Date of upload: 25 August 2021

References

Ó Ríordáin, S.P. 1940 Excavations at Cush, Co. Limerick (1934 and 1935). Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy 45, 83-181.

Westropp, T.J. 1918 Temair Erann, an Ancient Cemetery of the Ernai on Slievereagh, County Limerick. Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquities of Ireland, 111-20.

Westropp, T.J. 1916-17 On certain typical earthworks and ring walls in Co. Limerick. Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy 33C, 9-42, 444-92.