What is recorded here

Half-hidden behind a cliff-edge wall and a torn earthen bank, the fort in Cill Chuáin still holds its shape beside the Feohanagh river. Its shallow oval, broken causeway and stony interior suggest a small dwelling or marker rather than a grand fortress, yet it sits where the land ends and the river begins. People may have watched water, weather or passing life from that edge long before the name “fairy fort” gave the place its mystery.

Internal diam. 25m E-W, 12.7m N-S A semi-circular univallate rath perched on the edge of the cliff which forms the S bank of the Feohanagh river. To N it is bounded by the stone wall which skirts the cliff edge and to S it is surrounded by an earthen bank and fosse. The bank is 2.25m high internally and 4.2m wide at base. The fosse is 3.4m wide and rises 3.25m to the crest of the bank and 1.15m to the external ground level. There is a slight suggestion of a causeway across the fosse at SE, but the bank has been removed along this SE sector and the entrance gap is ill-defined. A low stony mound in the interior may consist of dump material from the removal of this bank. A 4.2m wide gap at SW has no corresponding causeway across the fosse and may be secondary. The above description is derived from J. Cuppage, ‘Corca Dhuibhne. Dingle Peninsula archaeological survey. Ballyferriter. Oidhreacht Chorca Dhuibhne’ (1986), no. 477. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload: 7 August 2013

This remains an important historical record, but the official description says the monument is no longer visible or has been destroyed. The monument record does not grant public access. Check the route and ask the landowner before entering private land.