Hut site in Dooneen (iveragh By.)

Two adjoining univallate raths are located in sloping pastureland on the edge of an old meander scarp of the Ferta river, which flows to S. A small stream runs between the two sites and the enclosing elements on both sides of this are somewhat eroded. A field wall overlies and obscures the S sector of the bank of the rath at W. Here the bank is best preserved at W and N, where it is 1.25m high externally, .8m high internally and 2.5m in basal width. The heavily overgrown circular interior measures 22m N-S x 17.5m E-W. Ua Riain noted a ‘smaller circle’ (KE070-049001-) in it, located close to the bank at W and measuring 19 feet (5.8m) in diameter (1927). He also recorded an inaccessible souterrain (KE070-049002-) located on the E side of this probable hut site. Neither feature can now be identified. The adjoining rath (KE070-050----) at E is better preserved and measures 19.6m in internal diameter. An external fosse survives from N to SE and averages 3.5m wide. Along this sector the enclosing bank rises 1.9m above the fosse and falls 1.3m to the interior. It measures 1.7m in basal width and features an entrance gap at E. The S and W sectors of the bank are eroded by the stream, which curves around the S perimeter of the rath and may have provided a natural defense here. In the overgrown interior of the site are the remnants of a large circular hut (KE070-050001-), now completely sod-covered. It measures 6.1m x 4.2m in internal diameter, and its walls average 1.15m wide. An entrance gap, 2.6m wide, is located at E. The above description is derived from A. O'Sullivan and J. Sheehan (compilers), 'The Iveragh peninsula: an archaeological survey of South Kerry'. Cork University Press (1996), no. 501. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload: 1 August 2013