Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

IR0895 Allihies, Cork

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

HER:  Archaeological Survey of Ireland SMR Database CO114-022004 (None)

NMR:  CO 114 (None)

SM:  None

NGR:  None

X:  457689  Y:  545985  (IRENET95)

Summary

The site is located directly N of Allihies town in the Beara peninsula on the SW coast of Co. Cork. Named 'Dooneen' on the 2nd edition OS six-inch map, it is a narrow rocky promontory projecting W into the sea at an altitude of 14m OD, with tall cliffs on its S, W and N sides. The promontory and its environs were mined for copper in the early 19th century and any traces of the original defences may have been destroyed during this phase of activity. The Doon [D–n] element in the name is the only indication that the site may have been an entrenched or enclosed headland. An abandoned mineshaft and mining waste occupy the E end of the promontory.

Status

Citizen Science:  ✗

Reliability of Data:  Unconfirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Unconfirmed

Location

X:  -1119489  Y:  6736779  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -10.056544988864125  Latitude:  51.648286393237  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  Republic of Ireland

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Cork

Historic County:  Cork

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Allihies

Monument Condition

None

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

Rocky promontory, jutting W into the sea, with tall cliffs on its S, W and N sides

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:  None

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

Altitude:  14.0m

Boundary

N/A


Dating Evidence

None

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:   19th century copper mining

Evidence:No related records

Investigation History

The site is named 'Dooneen' on the 2nd edition OS six-inch map suggesting the presence of a fort on the headland. Surveyed by the Cork Archaeological Survey in 2005; no surface trace of early defences.

Investigations:
1st Identified Map Depiction (1907):   2nd edition OS 6-inch mapping
Other (2005):   Cork Archaeological Survey

Interior Features

There are no features relating to an early fort in the interior of the headland

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

There are no recorded entrances to the site.

Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:  
0:   None

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   Access is from across the neck on the E

Guard Chambers:  ✗

Chevaux de Frise:  ✗

Entrances:No related records

Enclosing Works

There are no recorded banks, ramparts or ditches at the site

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   0.08ha.
Total:   0.08ha.

Total Footprint Area:  0.08ha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   None

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✗   None

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   0
SE Quadrant:   0
SW Quadrant:   0
NW Quadrant:   0
Total:   0

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:
✗   None

Number of Ditches:  None

Annex:
✗   None

References

Power, D., Byrne, E., Egan, U., Lane, S., and Sleeman, M. 2009. Archaeological Inventory of County Cork Volume 5. The stationary Office, Dublin.



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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