Satellite Imagery
Satellite Imagery
HER: Archaeological Survey of Ireland SMR Database KE054-088 (None)
NMR: KE 054 (None)
SM: None
NGR: None
X: 453386 Y: 597833 (IRENET95)
This small coastal promontory, located c. 6km SW of Anasaul in Co. Kerry, projects SW into Dingle Bay immediately S of Minard Head at an altitude of 11m OD. The site is recorded on the first edition six-inch OS map (1841). Measuring 55m in length and only 9m in width, the landward end is defended by a 16m long ditch and an internal wall. The ditch is 13m wide at the top, 2.9m to 6m wide at the base and 2.27m deep, rising 2.77m to the top of the wall inside (Redmond 1995, 28). The wall has an internal height of 0.5m and is c. 2.4m wide. A low central causeway, 0.75m high and 2m wide, crosses the ditch and gives access to the interior through a 1.2m wide gap in the wall (O'Sullivan and Sheehan 1996, 96). On the SE side of the entrance are two structures, the outer a possible wall chamber; the inner one possibly a hut abutting the wall. A possible 3rd chamber adjoins the latter's SW side. They are 1.5m by 1.6m and 1.8m by 1.9m internally. In the centre of the interior, about 24m from the defences, is a now inaccessible souterrain. The site is currently under pasture.
Citizen Science: ✗
Reliability of Data: Confirmed
Reliability of Interpretation: Confirmed
X: -1128857 Y: 6820570 (EPSG: 3857)
Longitude: -10.14069943058175 Latitude: 52.11292933723727 (EPSG:4326)
Country: Republic of Ireland
Current County or Unitary Authority: Kerry
Historic County: Kerry
Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland: Minard West
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 small coastal promontory, located c. 6km SW of Anasaul in Co. Kerry, projects SW into Dingle Bay immediately S of Minard Head at an altitude of 11m OD. Measuring 55m in length and only 9m in width, the landward end is defended by a 16m long ditch and an inner wall.
| 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: 11.0m
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 |
The site is recorded on the first edition six-inch OS map (1841). Visited and surveyed by Thomas Westropp in 1910 who recorded defences. Site later surveyed by the Dingle Survey (Cuppage 1986, 90)
| 1st Identified Map Depiction (1841): | OS six-inch mapping |
| 1st Identified Written Reference (1910): | Westropp |
| Earthwork Survey (1986): | Cuppage |
| Other (1995): | Redmond |
On the SE side of the entrance are two stone structures. They are 1.5m by 1.6m and 1.8m by 1.9m internally. A possible 3rd chamber adjoins its SW side.
None
| None | ✓ |
| Spring | ✗ |
| Stream | ✗ |
| Pool | ✗ |
| Flush | ✗ |
| Well | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
Souterrain within the interior
| 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 | ✗ |
A low central causeway, 0.75m high and 2m wide, crosses the ditch and gives access to the interior through a 1.2m wide gap in the wall
| 1: | None |
| 2: | None |
Guard Chambers: ✗
Chevaux de Frise: ✗
| 1. Simple Gap (East): | None |
The landward end (E) is defended by a 16m long ditch and an internal wall. The ditch is 13m wide at the top, 2.9m to 6m wide at the base and 2.27m deep, rising 2.77m to the top of the wall inside. The wall has an internal height of 0.5m and is c. 2.4m wide.
| Area 1: | 0.06ha. |
| Total: | 0.06ha. |
Total Footprint Area: 0.07ha.
None
| ✗ | None |
| ✗ | None |
| NE Quadrant: | 1 |
| SE Quadrant: | 0 |
| SW Quadrant: | 0 |
| NW Quadrant: | 0 |
| 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 ditch is 13m wide at the top, 2.9m to 6m wide at the base and 2.27m deep, rising 2.77m to the top of the wall inside |
Number of Ditches: 1
| ✗ | None |
Cuppage, J. et al. 1986. Archaeological Survey of the Dingle Peninsula. Ballyferriter
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.
Westropp, T.J. 1910. Promontory forts and similar structures of County Kerry. Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland 40, 179-213, 265-196
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