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Fairy fort / earthen ringfort in Ardagh (clanmaurice By.)

Fairy fort / earthen ringfort

What is recorded here

A circular earthen ringfort in Ardagh, County Kerry, rises nearly three metres above the grass, enclosing a space wide enough for a dozen people to walk in a circle. Two gaps mark the northern and southern edges, inviting entry rather than blocking it. At the centre sits a square depression, perhaps the collapsed throat of an underground passage that once linked the fort to the land beyond. The bank has stood since before written memory, shaping the field and forcing every person who enters to measure themselves against its height.
Internal diameter 34m N-S, 32m E-W This circular univallate rath is enclosed by a well- defined bank that rises to a maximum height of 2.8m externally and 2.2m above the interior. Two main gaps appear in the bank: one to the N c 2.5m wide and one to the S c 2m wide. In the centre of the interior there is a small depression, 3.6m x 3.6m, and this could suggest the collapsed remains of a Man-made underground passage (KE009-045001-) possibly connected to the Man-made underground passage remains that were located a few metres E in the same field (1120). The above description is derived from C. Toal, ‘North Kerry Archaeological Survey’. Dingle. Brandon in association with FAS Training and Employment Authority (1995), no. 336. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload: 2 August 2013

The monument record does not grant public access. Check the route and ask the landowner before entering private land.

What survives
Recorded monument

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