Satellite Imagery
Satellite Imagery
HER: Archaeological Survey of Ireland SMR Database GA009C001 (None)
NMR: GA 009 (None)
SM: None
NGR: None
X: 448493 Y: 764531 (IRENET95)
This coastal promontory is situated on the SW end of Inishshark off the coast of Co. Galway at an altitude of 49m OD. The line of the possible rampart is depicted on the first edition of the OS six-inch map (1840) series, where a substantial earthen bank can be found running in roughly straight line from Aill na nUibheacha Cove on the NW shore of the Island to F† Duilisc Cove on the SE for a distance of c. 460m. This earthen bank cuts off the whole SW end of the island, enclosing an area of c. 57.9ha. The bank is c. 4m in width, faced by drystone slabs, and topped by a later stone wall. Gosling notes that there are intermittent traces of possible huts set into the bank in places (1993, 29). A possible house-site is recorded within the interior of the site to the SE (GA009-002002) while a field system lies to the SW of the bank (GA009-002). This boundary encloses almost a quarter of the whole landmass of the island and is perhaps more likely to represent a land boundary than the rampart of a fort (SH).
Citizen Science: ✗
Reliability of Data: Confirmed
Reliability of Interpretation: Unconfirmed
X: -1145432 Y: 7096391 (EPSG: 3857)
Longitude: -10.289589831372206 Latitude: 53.608680645004725 (EPSG:4326)
Country: Republic of Ireland
Current County or Unitary Authority: Galway
Historic County: Galway
Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland: Inishark
None
| 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 | ✗ |
This possible coastal promontory is situated on the SW end of Inishshark off the coast of Co. Galway. It is defined by a substantial earthen bank running in roughly straight line from Aill na nUibheacha Cove on the NW shore of the Island to F† Duilisc Cove on the SE, a distance of c. 460m. It is situated at an altitude of 49m OD.
| 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: 49.0m
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: | Topped by a later wall, this whole work may be a succession of agricultural boundaries |
The site is depicted on the first edition of the OS six-inch map series. Visited for the compilation of the Galway Archaeological Inventory in 1984 (Gosling 1993, 29).
| 1st Identified Map Depiction (1840): | OS Six-inch mapping |
| Earthwork Survey (1984): | Paul Gosling |
A possible house-site is recorded within the interior of the site to the SE (GA009-002002) while a field system lies to the SW of the bank (GA009-002). Gosling notes that there are intermittent traces of possible huts set into the bank in places (1993, 29)
None
| None | ✓ |
| Spring | ✗ |
| Stream | ✗ |
| Pool | ✗ |
| Flush | ✗ |
| Well | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
None
| 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 | ✗ |
NO APPARENT FEATURES
| APs Not Checked | ✓ |
| None | ✗ |
| Roundhouses | ✗ |
| Rectangular Structures | ✗ |
| Pits | ✗ |
| Postholes | ✗ |
| Roads/Tracks | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
There are no recorded entrances to the site
| 0: | None |
| 2: | None |
Guard Chambers: ✗
Chevaux de Frise: ✗
This earthen bank cuts off the whole SW end of the island, enclosing an area of c. 57.94ha. The bank is c. 4m in width and faced by drystone slabs topped by a later stone wall. There is no recorded external ditch to this bank, but a possible ditch on its inside.
| Area 1: | 57.94ha. |
| Total: | 57.94ha. |
Total Footprint Area: 59.01ha.
None
| ✗ | None |
| ✗ | None |
| NE Quadrant: | 1 |
| SE Quadrant: | None |
| SW Quadrant: | None |
| NW Quadrant: | None |
| 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 |
| ✗ | Internal ditch |
Number of Ditches: 1
| ✗ | None |
Gosling, P. 1993. The Archaeological Inventory of County Galway: Vol 1, 28-31.Stationary Office, Dublin
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