Hut site in Coarha Beg

Located in well-drained, elevated pasture on Valencia Island. This complex comprises the remains of a polygonal hut with an annex, a souterrain and a circular hut. Just SE are the more recent remains of a large rectangular house. The polygonal hut measures 8m x 6m internally. Its drystone wall survives to an average height of .35m and it averages 1.5m thick. A basal row of uprights defines the inner wall-face at N. An entrance at SE is marked by one upright. Abutting the hut at NW are the sod-covered foundations of a rectangular annex, 3.4m x 2.3m. Located close to the W corner of this feature is an 8m stretch of bank which contains the entrance to a drystone lintelled souterrain in its W face. The inaccessible passage extends to SE. The poorly preserved foundations of a circular hut are located S of the polygonal example. It survives as a sod-covered mound of stone collapse, measuring 4.7m x 4.3m in overall diameter. The earth and stone foundations of the rectangular house measure 10m x 5.9m internally. A few uprights define the inner wall-face. A large scatter of stone collapse, including a quartz block, fills the interior. 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. 1198. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload: 31 July 2013