Fairy fort / earthen ringfort in Kilteenbane

Internal diam. 26.6m NW-SE, 28m NNE-SSW A univallate rath with Man-made underground passage situated on fairly level ground c. 150m W of the Finglas river. The roughly circular, level interior is enclosed by an earthen bank and external fosse. The bank is well preserved for most of its circumference, up to 1.6m high internally and 2.4m externally, but portion of the E sector has been levelled. In the latter area a 2m high, drystone-faced scarp defines the site. The walling is not an original feature of the site but marks the use of this portion of the bank as part of the field boundary system. The fosse is visible only around the W half of the enclosure. To E it has been disturbed by field fences and by the drain which skirts the base of the scarp. Where best preserved it is 2.4m wide at base and 1m deep. It is not clear which of the 2 breaks in the bank, at N and S, represent the original entrance. They are 4m and 1.4m wide respectively and slope 1.1m and .8m down to the external ground level. A drystone-built Man-made underground passage runs roughly E-W along the inner edge of the bank at S, extending across the entrance area. It is at least 9m long and is comprised of 2 passages, linked by a low, narrow creepway which is orientated c. NW-SE. Access to the E half of the structure is blocked by collapse, but a low gap beneath one of the roof-slabs provides a limited view of the creepway and E passage. The W half of the structure lacks its roof and here the passage is a maximum of .75m high and averages .68m in width. The S wall inclines inwards but the N wall, where it survives intact, is vertical. A drystone-built drain or air-vent leads off in a NW direction from the curved W wall. At its entrance, the latter is .2m high and .46m wide but its length is not known. Another drystone-built passage opens off the side of a depression which is located about 6m to N of the other passages. It is .7m wide but is filled in to within .27m of the roof. It runs SSW for at least 3m and presumably links up with the other passages. The above description is derived from J. Cuppage, ‘Corca Dhuibhne. Dingle Peninsula archaeological survey. Ballyferriter. Oidhreacht Chorca Dhuibhne’ (1986), no. 479. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload: 7 August 2013