What is recorded here

Tower is a three-storey octagonal belvedere locked into the west wall of Castletownshend House, its narrow windows and embattled parapet turning a private estate into a roadside spectacle. The north door opens onto the road while the string course separates storeys like a measurement of ambition. It may have served visitors, residents or both, but its shape still performs attention: a tower built to be seen before it was climbed.

Roadside octagonal tower incorporated into enclosing W wall of Castletownshend House. Three storey with embattled parapet; small narrow windows on all elevations, door ope in N wall. String course between storeys. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Cork. Volume 1: West Cork' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1992). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload/revision: 14 January 2009

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