Promontory fort - coastal

The National Monuments Service's description

Situated some 50m SE of ‘Doonallia Fort’ (MA075-005001-). The promontory fort comprises a squat, cliff-bound sea stack, c. 15m in height above mean sea level, with a sloping grassy summit. Its base can be approached on foot at very low water. It is named as ‘Doontraneen Isd.’ in Roman script on first edition of Ordnance Survey map (1841): its acreage is given as ‘2 R[oods]’ on the third edition (Ordnance Survey 1920). The name is noted by Mac Neill (1913, no. 41, 18) who renders it as ‘Dún Tràgha … fort of the strand or ebb’ and by Ó Muraíle (1999, 109, 112, 117). Described by Westropp (1911a, 21–2) who noted that ‘Mr Praeger swam out to it and climbed to the summit, but found no works upon it’. Westropp speculated that ‘the bulk of [its soil] cap fell off to either side, doubtless carrying with it the slight fences and the hut-sites if such existed’. No traces of habitation are discernible on its summit today. See also Westropp (1914, 325–6) and Casey (1999, 199, Mayo P4).

The above description is derived from: New Survey of Clare Island. Volume 5: Archaeology. Edited by Paul Gosling, Conleth Manning and John Waddell. (Royal Irish Academy, Dublin. 2007). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated.

Date of upload: 29 November 2018

References

Gosling, P., Manning, C. and Waddell, J. (eds.) 2007 New Survey of Clare Island, Volume 5: Archaeology. Dublin, Royal Irish Academy.

Casey, M. 1999 The coastal promontory forts of Ireland. A survey of counties Sligo, Mayo, Galway and Clare. Unpublished MA thesis, National University of Ireland, Galway.

ó Muraille, N. 1999 The place-names of Clare Island. In C. Mac Cárthaigh and K. Whelan (eds) New Survey of Clare Island. Volume 1: history and cultural landscape, 99-141. Dublin. Royal Irish Academy

Westropp, T.J. 1911 Clare Island survey: history and archaeology. Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy 31, Section 1, Part 2, 1-78.

Westropp, T.J. 1914 The promontory forts and early remains of the islands of Connacht. Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland 44, 297-337.