Satellite Imagery
Satellite Imagery
HER: Archaeological Survey of Ireland SMR Database WA026-036001 (None)
NMR: WA 026 (None)
SM: None
NGR: None
X: 653431 Y: 598110 (IRENET95)
This coastal promontory, depicted as the site of an 'ancient irish dwelling' on the first edition OS map, is situated c. 5km SW of Tramore town and c. 3km E of Annestown on the the SE coast of Co. Waterford. The headland once incorporated ÇSheep Island' projecting SE from the mainland into the sea at an altitude of 26m OD, but this stack is currently being heavily eroded and is inaccessible from the land. Westropp noted an oval hut site within a grass-covered enclosure on it (1914-16, 221-2) in the early twentieth century (elements of which are visible on satellite imagery). On the mainland, two lengths of rampart meet at a right angle, cutting off the adjacent promontory. The W section consists of an earthen bank (Wth 6m by 2m ext. H) now only 65m in length, while the E section, which is similarly constructed but with a berm between the bank and ditch, is about 100m in length. The external ditch measures 3.8m in width at the base with a depth of 1.4m. An outer bank described by Westropp is not evident (Moore 1999, 67). An entrance c. 6m in width and causeway are also interpreted as being modern in date and not original features. There are no recorded internal features within the enclosed area on the mainland, which has evidently been significantly reduced in size by erosion since first appearing on OS maps.
Citizen Science: ✗
Reliability of Data: Confirmed
Reliability of Interpretation: Confirmed
X: -803678 Y: 6824077 (EPSG: 3857)
Longitude: -7.219558963779963 Latitude: 52.13227120424775 (EPSG:4326)
Country: Republic of Ireland
Current County or Unitary Authority: Waterford
Historic County: Waterford
Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland: Islandikane East/Islandikane South
Headland is currently being heavily eroded and Sheep Island is inaccessible from the land.
| Extant | ✓ |
| Cropmark | ✗ |
| Likely Destroyed | ✗ |
None
| Woodland | ✗ |
| Commercial Forestry Plantation | ✗ |
| Parkland | ✗ |
| Pasture (Grazing) | ✓ |
| Arable | ✗ |
| Scrub/Bracken | ✗ |
| Bare Outcrop | ✗ |
| Heather/Moorland | ✗ |
| Heath | ✗ |
| Built-up | ✗ |
| Coastal Grassland | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
The headland lies partially on ÇSheeps Island projecting S from the mainland into the sea. It is currently being heavily eroded and Sheep Island itself is inaccessible from the land.
| Contour Fort | ✗ |
| Partial Contour Fort | ✗ |
| Promontory Fort | ✓ |
| Hillslope Fort | ✗ |
| Level Terrain Fort | ✗ |
| Marsh Fort | ✗ |
| Multiple Enclosure Fort | ✗ |
| Hilltop | ✗ |
| Coastal Promontory | ✓ |
| Inland Promontory | ✗ |
| Valley Bottom | ✗ |
| Knoll/Hillock/Outcrop | ✗ |
| Ridge | ✗ |
| Cliff/Plateau-edge/Scarp | ✗ |
| Hillslope | ✗ |
| Lowland | ✗ |
| Spur | ✗ |
Dominant Topographic Feature: SW-facing promontory
| North | ✗ |
| Northeast | ✗ |
| East | ✗ |
| Southeast | ✗ |
| South | ✗ |
| Southwest | ✓ |
| West | ✗ |
| Northwest | ✗ |
| Level | ✗ |
Altitude: 26.0m
N/A
There is no dating available for the site.
Reliability: D - None
| Pre 1200BC | ✗ |
| 1200BC - 800BC | ✗ |
| 800BC - 400BC | ✗ |
| 400BC - AD50 | ✗ |
| AD50 - AD400 | ✗ |
| AD400 - AD 800 | ✗ |
| Post AD800 | ✗ |
| Unknown | ✓ |
| Pre Hillfort: | None |
| Post Hillfort: | None |
Depicted as the site of an 'ancient irish dwelling' on the first edition 6-inch OS map (1840). Visited by Westropp in the early twentieth century (1906, 225; 1914-16, 221) who described 'slight outer mound 9 feet wide, a fosse from 3 feet to 6 feet deep and 18 feet wide, and an inner mound about 10 feet thick and high, but evidently much repaired' (1906, 255). He also describes 'sheeps' island located 100 yards to the SE south-east where 'A path, like that at Dane's Island, once led to it, down and up a narrow neck, which has been cut in two places by the collapse of two natural arches. There are traces of slight old earthworks, and a rectangular house site' (ibid., 255). Visited in 1989 for the compilation of the Archaeological Inventory of County Waterford where it was recorded as being eroded into two islands and is inaccessible from the land (Moore 1999, 67).
| 1st Identified Map Depiction (1840): | OS six-inch mapping |
| 1st Identified Written Reference (1906): | Westropp |
| Earthwork Survey (1989): | Moore |
| Earthwork Survey (None): | Westropp |
There are no recorded internal features within the enclosed area on the mainland, however, Westropp notes an oval hut site within a grass-covered enclosure (1914-16, 221-2) on the smaller, isolated headland to the SE during an investigation by him in the early twentieth century.
None
| None | ✓ |
| Spring | ✗ |
| Stream | ✗ |
| Pool | ✗ |
| Flush | ✗ |
| Well | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
Westropp notes an oval hut site within a grass-covered enclosure (1914-16, 221-2) on the stack to the SE during an investigation by him in the early twentieth century
| No Known Features | ✗ |
| Round Stone Structures | ✗ |
| Rectangular Stone Structures | ✗ |
| Curvilinear Platforms | ✗ |
| Other Roundhouse Evidence | ✗ |
| Pits | ✗ |
| Quarry Hollows | ✗ |
| Other | ✓ |
None
| No Known Excavation | ✓ |
| Pits | ✗ |
| Postholes | ✗ |
| Roundhouses | ✗ |
| Rectangular Structures | ✗ |
| Roads/Tracks | ✗ |
| Quarry Hollows | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
| Nothing Found | ✗ |
None
| No Known Geophysics | ✓ |
| Pits | ✗ |
| Roundhouses | ✗ |
| Rectangular Structures | ✗ |
| Roads/Tracks | ✗ |
| Quarry Hollows | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
| Nothing Found | ✗ |
None
| No Known Finds | ✓ |
| Pottery | ✗ |
| Metal | ✗ |
| Metalworking | ✗ |
| Human Bones | ✗ |
| Animal Bones | ✗ |
| Lithics | ✗ |
| Environmental | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
Traces of structures on the NW end of the stack
| APs Not Checked | ✗ |
| None | ✗ |
| Roundhouses | ✓ |
| Rectangular Structures | ✗ |
| Pits | ✗ |
| Postholes | ✗ |
| Roads/Tracks | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
An entrance c. 6m in width and causeway are interpreted as being modern in date and not original features.
| 1: | None |
| 2: | None |
Guard Chambers: ✗
Chevaux de Frise: ✗
On the mainland, two lengths of rampart meet at a right angle, cutting off the promontory. The W section consists of an earthen bank (Wth 6m by 2m ext. H) 65m in length. The E section is similarly constructed, but with an intervening berm between the bank and ditch and is 100m in length. The external ditch measures 3.8m in width at the base with a depth of 1.4m.
| Area 1: | 0.64ha. |
| Total: | 0.64ha. |
Total Footprint Area: 0.97ha.
None
| ✗ | The measurements only refer to the the section of the promontory on the mainland as it is unclear if the islands to the SE were once part of the same fort. |
| ✗ | None |
| NE Quadrant: | 1 |
| SE Quadrant: | 0 |
| SW Quadrant: | 0 |
| NW Quadrant: | 1 |
| Total: | 1 |
| Partial Univallate | ✓ |
| Univallate | ✗ |
| Partial Bivallate | ✗ |
| Bivallate | ✗ |
| Partial Multivallate | ✗ |
| Multivallate | ✗ |
| Unknown | ✗ |
| Partial Univallate | ✗ |
| Univallate | ✗ |
| Partial Bivallate | ✗ |
| Bivallate | ✗ |
| Partial Multivallate | ✗ |
| Multivallate | ✗ |
None
| None | ✗ |
| Earthen Bank | ✓ |
| Stone Wall | ✗ |
| Rubble | ✗ |
| Wall-walk | ✗ |
| Evidence of Timber | ✗ |
| Vitrification | ✗ |
| Other Burning | ✗ |
| Palisade | ✗ |
| Counter Scarp Bank | ✗ |
| Berm | ✓ |
| Unfinished | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
None
| None | ✗ |
| Earthen Bank | ✗ |
| Stone Wall | ✗ |
| Murus Duplex | ✗ |
| Timber-framed | ✗ |
| Timber-laced | ✗ |
| Vitrification | ✗ |
| Other Burning | ✗ |
| Palisade | ✗ |
| Counter Scarp Bank | ✗ |
| Berm | ✗ |
| Unfinished | ✗ |
| No Known Excavation | ✓ |
| Other | ✗ |
| ✗ | None |
| ✓ | the external ditch measures 3.8m in width at the base with a depth of 1.4m. |
Number of Ditches: 1
| ✗ | None |
Moore, M. 1999. Archaeological inventory of County Waterford, 64-8. The stationary Office, Dublin.
Westropp, T. J. 1906. Notes on certain Promontory Forts in the counties of Waterford and Wexford. The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland 36 (3), 239-25.
Westropp, T.J. 1914-16 Fortified headlands and castles on the south coast of Munster: Part II, from Ardmore to Dunmore, Co. Waterford. Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy 32C, 188-227
Atlas of Hillforts:
Wikidata:
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
Document Version 1.1