Satellite Imagery
Satellite Imagery
HER: Archaeological Survey of Ireland SMR Database MA002-001 (None)
NMR: MA 002 (None)
SM: None
NGR: None
X: 468099 Y: 839434 (IRENET95)
This coastal promontory is situated in the townland of Gortbrack, c. 7km N of Belmullet town, Co. Mayo. Marked as 'Spinadoon' on the first edition OS six-inch map (1839), it was first noted by Dr. Charles Browne in 1894 as a possible early fort, cut off from the mainland by a wall which was nearly gone when visited by Westropp in 1912. The promontory projects W and the approach is fairly level before the ground rising into a steep knoll sloping away around its S flank from an overhanging precipice. Westropp observed that the headland had possibly two enclosing elements at its neck: first an almost levelled earthen bank 2.4m wide and 8.5m long; and secondly, 19m to the W, a stone-faced rampart 'hardly a foot high, 8 or 9 feet thick across the neck' (1912, 197). At this time, only seven or eight of the foundation blocks remained set in the edge of the bank. There are no recorded internal features and the site is currently under pasture.
Citizen Science: ✗
Reliability of Data: Confirmed
Reliability of Interpretation: Confirmed
X: -1116074 Y: 7224632 (EPSG: 3857)
Longitude: -10.02586733326522 Latitude: 54.2866459567993 (EPSG:4326)
Country: Republic of Ireland
Current County or Unitary Authority: Mayo
Historic County: Mayo
Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland: Gortbrack
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 | ✗ |
The approach to this headland, which projects W, is fairly level before rising to a steep knoll, sloping S from an overhanging precipice. Westropp observed that the headland has possibly two enclosing elements at its neck.
| 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: W-facing promontory
| North | ✗ |
| Northeast | ✗ |
| East | ✗ |
| Southeast | ✗ |
| South | ✗ |
| Southwest | ✗ |
| West | ✓ |
| Northwest | ✗ |
| Level | ✗ |
Altitude: 15.0m
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 |
Marked as 'Spinadoon' on the first edition OS six-inch map (1839), it was first noted by Dr. Charles Browne in 1894 as a possible early fort. Visited and surveyed by Westropp in 1912.
| 1st Identified Map Depiction (1839): | OS six-inch maps |
| 1st Identified Written Reference (1894): | Charles Browne |
| Earthwork Survey (1912): | Thomas Westropp |
There are no recorded internal features within the enclosed area
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 through the earthen bank or wall.
| 0: | None |
| 2: | Access was from across the neck on the E |
Guard Chambers: ✗
Chevaux de Frise: ✗
Westropp observed that the headland had possibly two enclosing elements at its neck: first an almost levelled earthen bank 2.4m wide and 8.5m long; and secondly, 19m to the W, a stone-faced rampart 'hardly a foot high, 8 or 9 feet thick across the neck' (1912, 197). At this time, only seven or eight of the foundation blocks remained set in the edge of the bank.
| Area 1: | 0.56ha. |
| Total: | 0.56ha. |
Total Footprint Area: 0.58ha.
None
| ✗ | None |
| ✗ | None |
| NE Quadrant: | 0 |
| SE Quadrant: | 2 |
| SW Quadrant: | 0 |
| NW Quadrant: | 0 |
| Total: | 2 |
| 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: 0
| ✗ | None |
Browne, C. 1895. The ethnography of the Mullet, Inishkea Islands, and Portnacloy, Co. Mayo. Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy 19 587- 637
O'Donovan, J. 1838. Ordnance Survey Letters, Co. Mayo
Otway, C. 1841. Sketches in Erris and Tirawley. Dublin
Westropp, T.J. 1912. The promontory forts and early remains of the coasts of County Mayo. Part 1- The north coast (Tirawley and Erris). The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland 42, 59-139.
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