Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

IR1135 Reencaheragh (Rinn Chathrach), Kerry

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

HER:  Archaeological Survey of Ireland SMR Database KE087-072 (None)

NMR:  KE 087 (None)

SM:  None

NGR:  None

X:  435153  Y:  572145  (IRENET95)

Summary

This coastal promontory is situated between the two narrow inlets of Coosnaskirtane and Coosacunning on the S side of the entrance to Portmagee Channel at an altitude of 8m OD, running out for a maximum distance of 150m. Access to the promontory is barred at its root, which is no more than 15.5m wide, by two low earthen banks; these average 0.65m high; and converge towards the NW. A third bank lies a further 22m to the SW, where the crest contracts to little more than 3m; this bank is 2.1m wide and 0.88m high (Redmond 1995, 42). This neck runs out a further 30m before expanding into a narrow wedge-shaped area, which measures some 85m in maximum length by 16m in breadth and slopes towards the cliffs to the N. There are no recorded internal features.

Status

Citizen Science:  ✗

Reliability of Data:  Confirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Confirmed

Location

X:  -1157092  Y:  6777932  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -10.394333771691285  Latitude:  51.87709148877047  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  Republic of Ireland

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Kerry

Historic County:  Kerry

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Reencaheragh

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

This coastal promontory is situated between the two narrow inlets of Coosnaskirtane and Coosacunning on the S side of the entrance to Portmagee Channel at an altitude of 8m OD. The headland extends SW from the mainland for an overall distance of 150m contracting into a narrow neck after 27m and then opening up after a further 30m into a narrow wedge-shape some 85m in maximum length by 16m in breadth.

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:  Site is overlooked to the SE

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

Altitude:  8.0m

Boundary

N/A


Dating Evidence

There is no dating available for the site

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

The site is not depicted on any editions of the OS six-inch maps. Visited and surveyed for the compilation of the Iveragh Archaeological Inventory in the 1990s (O'Sullivan and Sheehan 1996, 128).

Investigations:
Earthwork Survey (1996):   O'Sullivana and Sheehan 1996

Interior Features

There are no recorded internal features

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 promontory

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

Access on the landward side is barred at the root of the promontory by two earthen banks that average 0.65m in height. A the third bank, 2.1m wide and 0.88m high, lies 22m further into the headland where it contracts into a narrows neck.

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   0.17ha.
Total:   0.17ha.

Total Footprint Area:  0.23ha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   None

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✗   It is unclear whether any of these are ramparts

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   3
SE Quadrant:   0
SW Quadrant:   0
NW Quadrant:   0
Total:   3

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:  0

Annex:
✗   None

References

O'Sullivan, A and Sheehan, J. 1996. Iveragh Peninsula: An Archaeological Survey of South Kerry. Cork University Press. Cork

Redmond, M. 1995. A survey of the promontory forts of the Kerry peninsulas. Journal of the Kerry Archaeological and Historical Society 28, 5-63.



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


Document Version 1.1