Satellite Imagery
Satellite Imagery
HER: Archaeological Survey of Ireland SMR Database KE009-024001 (None)
NMR: KE 009 (None)
SM: None
NGR: None
X: 481514 Y: 636657 (IRENET95)
This promontory fort is situated c. 6km SW of Ballybunion, Co. Kerry, projecting NW from the mainland at an altitude of 6m OD. Measuring 62m NW-SE and up to 23m NE-SW, the headland is enclosed on its landward side (SE) by ditch running in a NE-SW direction for approximately 56m. The ditch is situated immediately adjacent to Browns Castle and is 3.65m wide and ranges between 1.79m to 2.34m deep below the surrounding land. All that can be seen of the castle is a section of the N wall, c 3.7m long, which is situated right on the edge of the ditch. At the NE angle of the wall are the remains of what would appear to be a spiral staircase in a round turret. In the W sector of the promontory is a rectangular house site 13.4m by 7.7m with walls 2m thick. They rise in height to between 0.16m and 0.25m. To the SE of this is another rectangular house-site measuring 13.4m by 4.9m. In the ENE sector is a sub-circular area 6.8m in diameter, with a 3.2m opening to the E (Toal 1995). It is unclear whether the house-sites and Brown's Castle are contemporary. The site is currently under pasture.
Citizen Science: ✗
Reliability of Data: Confirmed
Reliability of Interpretation: Confirmed
X: -1084684 Y: 6885280 (EPSG: 3857)
Longitude: -9.743880850248576 Latitude: 52.46847922272778 (EPSG:4326)
Country: Republic of Ireland
Current County or Unitary Authority: Kerry
Historic County: Kerry
Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland: Clashmelcon
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 coastal promontory projects NW from the mainland and measures 62m NW-SE and up to 23m NE-SW at an altitude of c. 6m OD. It is defended to the SE on its landward side by ditch running in a NE-SW direction for approximately 56m.
| 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: None
| North | ✗ |
| Northeast | ✗ |
| East | ✗ |
| Southeast | ✗ |
| South | ✗ |
| Southwest | ✗ |
| West | ✗ |
| Northwest | ✗ |
| Level | ✓ |
Altitude: 6.0m
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: | Medieval castle and other related buildings |
The site is depicted on the first edition six-inch OS map (1841). Visited and surveyed by the North Dingle Survey in the mid-1990s (Toal 1995).
| 1st Identified Map Depiction (1841): | OS six-inch mapping |
| Earthwork Survey (1995): | North Dingle Survey |
A rectangular house site 13.4m by 7.7m with walls 2m thick is recorded in the W extent of the promontory. The walls rise in height to between 0.16m to 0.25m. To the SE of this is another rectangular house-site 13.4m by 4.9m. In the ENE sector is a sub-circular area 6.8m in diameter, with a 3.2m wide opening to the E.
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 into the interior of the promontory.
| 0: | None |
| 2: | None |
Guard Chambers: ✗
Chevaux de Frise: ✗
The headland is defended to the SE on its landward side by ditch running in a NE-SW direction for approximately 56m. The ditch is situated immediately adjacent to Browns Castle and is 3.65m wide and ranges between 1.79m to 2.34m deep below the surrounding land
| Area 1: | 0.23ha. |
| Total: | 0.23ha. |
Total Footprint Area: 0.36ha.
None
| ✗ | None |
| ✗ | None |
| NE Quadrant: | 0 |
| SE Quadrant: | 1 |
| 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 |
| ✓ | None |
Number of Ditches: 1
| ✗ | None |
Toal, C. 1995. North Kerry Archaeological Survey. Dingle
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