What is recorded here

Fairy forts are human ringforts misnamed by legend. In Spahill, a thirty-metre earthen bank still stands, with a shallow ditch outside and a wide gap at the northwest where boulders now mask the entrance. People lived there, built there, and left the shape behind. The fairies came later, filling the forgotten place with wonder.

The following description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Carlow' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1993). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload/revision: 17 July 2007 Circular area (diam. c. 30.7m) enclosed by bank (max. H 1m; Wth c. 4.7m). Traces of shallow external fosse, deepened at S and SW where it acts as field boundary. Wide gap at NW, probably original, now masked by boulders.

A fairy fort, or earthen ringfort in Spahill, is a circular earthwork enclosure typical of early-medieval Ireland, likely dating to between the 5th and 10th centuries. Local folklore associates such sites with the faé, and they were often considered sacred or inhabited by supernatural beings.

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