St. Brendans Oratory (in ruins) — Inis Tuaisceart

National Monument No. 63. Inishtooskert, the northernmost of the Blasket island group, lies 4 miles off the W extremity of the Dingle Peninsula and 2.5 miles N of the Great Blasket. An area of 241 acres is bounded on all sides by sea-cliffs, and the land slopes upwards in a NW direction, from under 100 feet (30m) OD along the SE side to a maximum altitude of 573 feet (175m) roughly midway along the NW side of the island. The land is generally rocky with a thin soil cover and the N half of the island is devoid of any trace of settlement activity. Part of the S half of the island is occupied by a small field system, and it is within this that the Early Christian settlement, named after St. Brendan, is located. The island does not appear to have been occupied in 1756 (Smith, 185), but there was intermittent occupation during the first half of the 19th century (Stagles 1980, 125-6) and, in 1838, the Kean family were in residence in the large clochaun (Windele 137-40). This later occupation centered on the same area as the Early Christian settlement and, from a surface inspection alone, it is not possible to differentiate between an early and late field system or to determine to what extent the various structures may have been modified by the later inhabitants. The monastic settlement is not now contained within a single formal enclosure. The settlement area consists of 3 small irregularly-shaped enclosures, defined by stone walls of varying dimensions and in varying condition. The two easternmost of these apparently constitute the cemetery area. The oratory (1), stone crosses (2) and leacht (3) occupy a small, roughly wedge-shaped enclosure measuring c. 20m E-W x 15m N-S. Two small rectangular huts (4), possibly animal shelters, are built into the N wall of the enclosure, and a small lintelled recess in the outer face of the S wall was also probably constructed as a shelter for small animals. A semi-circular or D-shaped enclosure, measuring 23m NW-SE x 13m SW-NE, lies directly W of the 1st enclosure and the wall that divides them incorporates a small drystone-built hut (5). A low stony step divides this enclosure into an upper and lower terrace and the only feature visible in the lower S section is a rectangular arrangement of stones in the SE corner. This latter feature measures c. 4m NW-SE and the stones project no more than .1m above the surface. It may be the remains of a sheep-pen but too little survives to allow classification. A single grave (6) is exposed on the upper terrace, and an arc of walling, .48m high and 4 to 5m long, to W of this may be the remains of a hut site. A curvature in the enclosing wall at W may also indicate the location of a hut-site. The westernmost of the enclosures is irregular in plan and measures c. 17.5m N-S x 13.8m E-W. It is subdivided internally but the dividing wall may be a late feature. The large clochaun (7) occupies the NW corner and a 2nd hut may have been adjoined to its S side. The latter is now represented by a large spread of stone collapse with a hollowed centre measuring c. 3.2m in diameter. Another clochaun (8) lies c. 70m to W, abutting the SW side of the field wall which extends NW from the large clochaun. The large sub-rectangular field to N of the 3 smaller enclosures contains a holy well (9) but is otherwise occupied by a series of cultivation ridges. The only other features discovered at the site are a holed stone which may have been a door pivot, a notched stone which may have been a grave-marker, and a rough-out for a quernstone. Five possible hut-sites are located apart from the main focus of the settlement but it is not known whether they relate to the Early Christian settlement or to the later occupation of the island. Two of these (10) are located directly inside the W wall of the westernmost field in the system, 2 others (11) lie outside the field system, about 100m N and upslope of the W field, and the 5th (12) lies c. 125m W of these latter. (1) (KE051-001001-) St. Brendan's oratory/Teampall Bréanainn: A rectangular dry stone oratory, 2.94m N-S x 3.4m E-W internally, with walls, 1 to 1.14m in thickness, preserved to a maximum height of 1m. Two uprights, .98m high x .52m wide and .88m high x .48m wide, set against the internal face of the W wall flank the doorway here. The opening is .71m wide and the S side of the passage is prolonged externally by an orthostat .98m high and .4m long. A drystone altar, butted against the E end of the interior, measures 1.05m long x .59m wide x .54m high; it may be a later feature. Adjacent to the S wall of the oratory is a mound of stone, predominantly of quartz, which measures c. 4.5m N-S at least 2.5m E-W and it is at the SW corner of this feature that the stone cross (2) now stands. (2) (KE051-001002-) This stone, worked to the rough shape of a cross, measures 1m in height and .75m across the arms; the N arm appears to be broken. A 2nd cross, now missing, was described in the OSM as being located 'in the pile of stones', possibly the leacht. (3) (KE051-001003-) The leacht lies 4m E of the oratory and consists of a drystone-faced platform or mound of stone measuring 4.8m N-S x 1.76 to 2m E-W x .6m in height. It is surmounted by a large quantity of quartz stones. A possible drain is exposed between the leacht and the E wall of the enclosure. It consists of a drystone-lined linear hollow measuring at least 2.2m E-W, .46m N-S and .15m in depth and it is covered by a series of flagstones. (4) (KE051-001004-) One of the rectangular drystone-built huts is built within the thickness of the wall at the NW corner of the 1st enclosure. It measures 1.85 x 1.08m internally and is roofed by flat flags at a height of .65m above the floor. The entrance in the E wall is .47m wide. The 2nd structure is built against the inner face of the N wall of the enclosure. It measures 1.5 x 2.18m x 1.04m in height internally and the walls are formed by upright slabs with some drystone walling filling the interstices and the gap between the upright slabs and the flagged roof. The entrance at the SW corner is only .35m wide. (5) (KE051-001010-) A roughly D-shaped hut measuring 2.5 x 1.32m x 1.34m in height internally. The walls are of poor drystone construction and incline inwards towards the flagged roof. The entrance at SW is .57m wide and the short passage leading up to it is unroofed. (6) The stone-lined grave is 1.12m long E-W x .6m wide x .4m deep and now lacks any covering slabs. It is possible that this relates to the later settlement on the island as, though it was customary for the inhabitants to be buried on the mainland, the weather did not always permit this and a child of the Kean family was buried on the island in the early 19th century (Windele 1838). (7) (KE051-001011-) A circular drystone-built hut measuring 4m in diameter and 2.83m in height internally. The wall is 1.5 to 3.3m thick and is corbelled inwards towards the 3 slabs that form the roof. The floor lies 1.5m below the external ground level, and the lintelled doorway at E, .86m wide x 1.04m high x 1.9m long, opens onto a similarly sunken courtyard. This latter measures 3.64m E-W x 1.9m N-S and is defined by drystone walling up to 1.5m high. There were probably steps in the E wall but these are now obscured by collapse. (8) (KE051-001012-) Only the N half of this probably circular hut survives. It measures c. 3.6m in diameter internally and the corbelled drystone wall stands to a maximum height of 1m. The remains have been converted to a sheep-shelter by the addition of a flimsey N-S dividing wall and by the roofing of the W part with a large flag. (9) (KE051-001005-) Tobar Bréanainn: A depression, 1.5m x 1m x 1.2m deep, lined with slabs which are surmounted by drystone walling. It was probably originally provided with a flagged roof and there may formerly have been steps down to the water from the open S side. The well is now dry and there is only a faint tradition that it was ever considered holy (Ó D