Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

IR1589 Ballyherragh, Clare

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

HER:  Archaeological Survey of Ireland SMR Database CL022-001 (None)

NMR:  CL 022 (None)

SM:  None

NGR:  None

X:  501748  Y:  687796  (IRENET95)

Summary

Situated at an inlet known as 'Coolrone' this possible coastal promontory fort is located in Ballyerragh townland on the W coast of Co. Clare, c. 1.44km S of 'Spanish Point'. It is not depicted on any edition of the OS six-inch maps but satellite imagery reveals a broad gully crossing the neck of the promontory, which projects SE into Liscannor Bay at an altitude of 4m OD. The gully picks up a cleft in the underlying rock and is almost certainly natural, but whether it has been enhanced or adapted with the addition of a bank is unclear; If so it has been heavily ploughed down. The internal area would be in the order of 0.6ha and is enclosed by a relatively modern field bank running round the cliff-edge. There are no recorded internal features and the site is currently under pasture.

Status

Citizen Science:  ✗

Reliability of Data:  Unconfirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Unconfirmed

Location

X:  -1053245  Y:  6970426  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -9.46146127326377  Latitude:  52.93197827825377  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  Republic of Ireland

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Clare

Historic County:  Clare

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Ballyherragh

Monument Condition

None

Condition:
Extant   ✓
Cropmark   ✗
Likely Destroyed   ✗

Land Use

Within cultivated fields

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

It is not depicted on any edition of the OS six-inch maps but projects SE into Liscannor Bay at an altitude of 4m OD.

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:  The site is overlooked to the W

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

Altitude:  4.0m

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 edtion of the OS six-inch maps, but is noted in Archaeological Survey Database of the National Monuments Service

Investigations:No related records

Interior Features

None

Water Source

A number of springs are recorded on the OS 25-inch map outside the promontory to the N and SW

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

None

Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:  
1:   Possible gap on the W

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   None

Guard Chambers:  ✗

Chevaux de Frise:  ✗

Entrances:No related records

Enclosing Works

Gully 30m broad extends in a broad arc across the neck on the W

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   0.6ha.
Total:   0.6ha.

Total Footprint Area:  0.63ha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   None

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✗   None

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   0
SE Quadrant:   0
SW Quadrant:   0
NW Quadrant:   1
Total:   1

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:  None

Annex:
✗   None

References

No related records



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


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