Ringfort - cashel

The National Monuments Service's description

In rough, bracken-covered pasture, located on top of a rise in an undulating stony landscape. An old farm trackway, flanked by field walls, is located immediately to E.
A subcircular enclosure (diam. c. 25-30m) is shown on the 1838 OS 6-inch map, with a cluster of vernacular houses immediately to S. It is shown on later map editions as an irregular-shaped enclosure crossed on the E side by a N−S field wall, and incorporated into a network of small, irregular walled fields. It is also recorded on an aerial photograph (SMR file: OS 5 6851 -2; Roll 217, pr. 15). In the aerial photograph, part of the NW quadrant of the interior is enclosed by a wall, abutting the inner face of the cashel wall, and a possible field clearance cairn abuts the cashel wall at S.
The western two thirds of the cashel were destroyed during land reclamation. A remnant of the original enclosing wall survives in a shallow arc (cord L 18m) at NE–SE. The wall (Wth 1.8-2m; int. H 0.6m; ext. H 0.8m) is evident as sod-covered jumble of stones, but remnants of the internal wall face remain intact in parts. Field clearance stones are heaped on the wall. Immediately to W is a later N−S field wall which cuts across the E edge of the cashel.
A souterrain (MA072-087001-) is located roughly in the centre of the cashel interior.

Compiled by: Jane O’Shaughnessy

Date of upload: 21 May 2021