Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

IR0715 Liss, Tipperary

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

HER:  Archaeological Survey of Ireland SMR Database TN034-070 (None)

NMR:  TN 034 (None)

SM:  None

NGR:  None

X:  603219  Y:  664661  (IRENET95)

Summary

Multiple enclosure on low hilltop at E foothills of Silvermines Mountains, overlooking Cromoge River to E with panoramic views. Possible bivallate hillfort with total site footprint of 9.7ha. There are no recorded entrance features. No evidence for any internal features on the surface. Inner enclosing elements are reduced to scarp and first edition Ordnance Survey mapping indicates the rampart was much more impressive than at present. Possible concentric outer enclosing elements apparent in first edition Ordnance Survey mapping. These have been destroyed and are now only visible to the N. Interior under pasture. First map depiction in first edition Ordnance Survey 6 inch mapping. Monument surveyed by Farrelly and O'Brien (2002).

Status

Citizen Science:  ✗

Reliability of Data:  Confirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Confirmed

Location

X:  -885250  Y:  6933767  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -7.952338267015242  Latitude:  52.73302531725812  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  Republic of Ireland

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Tipperary

Historic County:  Tipperary

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Liss

Monument Condition

Inner enclosing elements reduced to scarp. N section of possible outer enclosing elements extant.

Condition:
Extant   ✓
Cropmark   ✗
Likely Destroyed   ✓

Land Use

None

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

Multiple enclosure on low hilltop at E foothills of Silvermines Mountains, overlooking Cromoge River to E with panoramic views. Flat terrain to the N, E and S give particular emphasis to these views.

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:  Low hilltop.

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

Altitude:  101.0m

Boundary

N/A


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:   None
Post Hillfort:   None

Evidence:No related records

Investigation History

First map depiction in first edition Ordnance Survey 6 inch mapping. Also depicted in second edition Ordnance Survey maps. Monument surveyed by Farrelly and O'Brien (2002).

Investigations:
1st Identified Map Depiction (1842):   First edition Ordnance Survey 6 inch mapping.
Other (1906):   Second edition 25 inch Ordnance Survey mapping.
Other (2002):   Monument survey by Farrelly and O'Brien (2002).

Interior Features

No evidence for any internal features on the surface.

Water Source

None

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

Surface

None

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

Inner enclosing elements comprise a bank of earth 1.6m wide and 0.3m high with no obvious ditch feature. External drystone wall facing in some sections is likely to be of nineteenth-century date (Farrelly and O'Brien 2002). First edition Ordnance Survey mapping indicates that the enclosing elements were originally much more substantial. Possible outer enclosing element identified on aerial photography and first edition Ordnance Survey mapping. Apparent to the N, NE and W as a concentric bank approximately 125m from the inner enclosing elements.

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   1.25ha.
Area 2:   8.79ha.
Total:   8.79ha.

Total Footprint Area:  9.26ha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   None

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✗   None

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   2
SE Quadrant:   1
SW Quadrant:   1
NW Quadrant:   2
Total:   2

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

Earthen bank with external drystone facing likely to be later in date.

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:
✗   No obvious ditch feature recorded.

Number of Ditches:  0

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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