Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

IR0708 Ballincurra, Tipperary (Ballincurra Hill, Killeen, Kilnaneave)

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

HER:  Archaeological Survey of Ireland SMR Database TN027-140001 (None)

NMR:  TN 027 (None)

SM:  None

NGR:  None

X:  592362  Y:  669840  (IRENET95)

Summary

Univallate contour fort surrounding the domed summit of mountain at the N edge of the Silvermines Mountain range. Knockadiggeen hillfort 1.4km to NE (Atlas No.0713). The site has a total site footprint of approximately 1.1ha. Univallate for the entire circuit with no recorded entrance features. There is a heather covered cairn near the centre of the hillfort. There are no recorded entrance features. Ramparts survive best at NE. Commercial forestry plantation covers approximately two thirds of the hillfort. The remainder is under heavy heather growth. First map detection in second edition Ordnance Survey mapping. Monument surveyed by Farrelly and O'Brien (2002).

Status

Citizen Science:  ✗

Reliability of Data:  Confirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Confirmed

Location

X:  -903159  Y:  6942320  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -8.113211641231937  Latitude:  52.7795288220733  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  Republic of Ireland; None

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Tipperary

Historic County:  Tipperary

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Ballincurra

Monument Condition

None

Condition:
Extant   ✓
Cropmark   ✗
Likely Destroyed   ✗

Land Use

Commercial forestry plantation covers approximately two thirds of the hillfort. The remainder is under heavy heather growth.

Current Use:
Woodland   ✗
Commercial Forestry Plantation   ✓
Parkland   ✗
Pasture (Grazing)   ✗
Arable   ✗
Scrub/Bracken   ✗
Bare Outcrop   ✗
Heather/Moorland   ✓
Heath   ✗
Built-up   ✗
Coastal Grassland   ✗
Other   ✗

Landscape

Hillfort Type

Surrounding summit of domed mountain at the N edge of the Silvermines Mountain range. Panoramic views from the summit. The hillfort overlooks a natural break in the mountains to the W and the Nenagh River to the S.

Type:
Contour Fort   ✓
Partial Contour Fort   ✗
Promontory Fort   ✗
Hillslope Fort   ✗
Level Terrain Fort   ✗
Marsh Fort   ✗
Multiple Enclosure Fort   ✗

Topographic Position

Position:
Hilltop   ✓
Coastal Promontory   ✗
Inland Promontory   ✗
Valley Bottom   ✗
Knoll/Hillock/Outcrop   ✗
Ridge   ✗
Cliff/Plateau-edge/Scarp   ✗
Hillslope   ✗
Lowland   ✗
Spur   ✗

Dominant Topographic Feature:  Ballincurra mountain.

Aspect:
North   ✗
Northeast   ✗
East   ✗
Southeast   ✗
South   ✗
Southwest   ✗
West   ✗
Northwest   ✗
Level   ✓

Altitude:  403.0m

Boundary

At the center of the hillfort, the townland boundaries of Ballincurra, Killeen and Kilnaneave meet.

Boundary Type:  Parish/Townland


Dating Evidence

No dating evidence.

Reliability:  D - None

Principal Activity:
Pre 1200BC   ✗
1200BC - 800BC   ✗
800BC - 400BC   ✗
400BC - AD50   ✗
AD50 - AD400   ✗
AD400 - AD 800   ✗
Post AD800   ✗
Unknown   ✓

Other Activity:
Pre Hillfort:   Cairn.
Post Hillfort:   None

Evidence:No related records

Investigation History

First map detection in second edition Ordnance Survey mapping. Monument surveyed by Farrelly and O'Brien (2002).

Investigations:
1st Identified Map Depiction (1906):   Second edition Ordnance Survey 25 inch mapping
Other (2002):   Monument survey by Farrelly and O'Brien

Interior Features

Circular cairn 18m in diameter and 2.2m in maximum height at highest point near center of hillfort.

Water Source

None

Source:
None   ✓
Spring   ✗
Stream   ✗
Pool   ✗
Flush   ✗
Well   ✗
Other   ✗

Surface

Cairn.

Interior Features (Surface):
No Known Features   ✗
Round Stone Structures   ✗
Rectangular Stone Structures   ✗
Curvilinear Platforms   ✗
Other Roundhouse Evidence   ✗
Pits   ✗
Quarry Hollows   ✗
Other   ✓

Excavation

None

Interior Features (Excavation):
No Known Excavation   ✓
Pits   ✗
Postholes   ✗
Roundhouses   ✗
Rectangular Structures   ✗
Roads/Tracks   ✗
Quarry Hollows   ✗
Other   ✗
Nothing Found   ✗

Geophysics

None

Interior Features (Geophysics):
No Known Geophysics   ✓
Pits   ✗
Roundhouses   ✗
Rectangular Structures   ✗
Roads/Tracks   ✗
Quarry Hollows   ✗
Other   ✗
Nothing Found   ✗

Finds

None

Interior (Finds):
No Known Finds   ✓
Pottery   ✗
Metal   ✗
Metalworking   ✗
Human Bones   ✗
Animal Bones   ✗
Lithics   ✗
Environmental   ✗
Other   ✗

Aerial

NO APPARENT FEATURES

Interior Features (Aerial):
APs Not Checked   ✗
None   ✓
Roundhouses   ✗
Rectangular Structures   ✗
Pits   ✗
Postholes   ✗
Roads/Tracks   ✗
Other   ✗

Entrances

No obvious entrance features recorded.

Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:  
0:   None

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   None

Guard Chambers:  ✗

Chevaux de Frise:  ✗

Entrances:No related records

Enclosing Works

Oval area defined by an earthen bank approximately 2m wide and 0.7m high and external ditch 3m wide and 0.6m deep. Ditch at E is V shaped.

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   1.04ha.
Total:   1.04ha.

Total Footprint Area:  1.13ha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   None

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✓   None

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   1
SE Quadrant:   1
SW Quadrant:   1
NW Quadrant:   1
Total:   1

Morphology

Current Morphology:
Partial Univallate   ✗
Univallate   ✓
Partial Bivallate   ✗
Bivallate   ✗
Partial Multivallate   ✗
Multivallate   ✗
Unknown   ✗

Detailed Morphology:
Partial Univallate   ✗
Univallate   ✗
Partial Bivallate   ✗
Bivallate   ✗
Partial Multivallate   ✗
Multivallate   ✗

Surface Evidence

None

Enclosing Works (Surface):
None   ✗
Earthen Bank   ✓
Stone Wall   ✗
Rubble   ✗
Wall-walk   ✗
Evidence of Timber   ✗
Vitrification   ✗
Other Burning   ✗
Palisade   ✗
Counter Scarp Bank   ✗
Berm   ✗
Unfinished   ✗
Other   ✗

Excavated Evidence

None

Enclosing Works (Excavation):
None   ✗
Earthen Bank   ✗
Stone Wall   ✗
Murus Duplex   ✗
Timber-framed   ✗
Timber-laced   ✗
Vitrification   ✗
Other Burning   ✗
Palisade   ✗
Counter Scarp Bank   ✗
Berm   ✗
Unfinished   ✗
No Known Excavation   ✓
Other   ✗

Other

Gang Working:
✗   None

Ditches:
✓   External ditch.

Number of Ditches:  1

Annex:
✗   None.

References

Farrelly, J. and O'Brien, C. 2002. Archaeological Inventory of County Tipperary. Volume 1: North Tipperary. Department of the Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.



Terms of Use

This work is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 and should be cited as:

Lock, Gary and Ralston, Ian. 2024. Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland. Available at: https://hillforts.arch.ox.ac.uk


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