Hut site in Bray

One of a group of five huts located about 80m ESE of KE087-022----. A carefully built drystone hut incorporating a series of twelve decorated stones. A second hut abuts its S side. The former, almost square in internal plan, measures 5.75m x 5.6m. Externally it is rectangular in plan with rounded corners. Only the N angle is rounded internally. Its corbelled walls stand to a maximum internal height of 1.5m and average 2.1m in basal thickness. They are faced internally and externally with coursed masonry and a number of slabs, which cross the corner from one wall to another, are cut to the form of the angle. A well-constructed lintelled entrance with slightly inclining jambs is located midway along the NE wall; it measures .8m wide at base and is 2.05m long. Westropp and Henry noted two protruding slabs on the inner sides of the entrance with perforations for door-frame posts (1912, 300; 1957, 94); only the S example remains in situ. The other lies outside the doorway. In the SE wall, close to the E angle, is a lintelled window ope which measures .55m wide and 1.35m long; this was interpreted as a flue by Henry and as a doorway by Westropp. There is evidence for a low external offset on this wall. The SW wall is poorly preserved and features a gap, 1.35m wide. A lintelled wall-niche occurs in the NW wall, close to the W angle; it measures .46m x .47m x .58m deep. A large block of quartz abuts the N external angle. Nine inscribed stones are incorporated into the inner face of the NW wall; a tenth occurs in the SW wall, while a further two are located on the S side of the entrance passage. The motifs consist mainly of rough, equal-armed crosses, and display varying degrees of weathering. Stone A: A roughly rectangular-shaped stone, .51m x .2m, in the S side of the entrance passage, .5m below the roofing lintel. A well-preserved cross with slightly expanded terminals. Stone B: In the NW wall, close to present ground level. A rectangular block, .33m x .15m, featuring a cross with widely expanded terminals. Stone C: Located one course above the previous stone in the NW wall. A roughly lozenge-shaped block, .51m x 19m, featuring a cross with expanded terrninals. Stone D: Above the smaller wall-niche in the NW wall. An irregular block, .51m x .15m, featuring a weathered cross with slightly expanded terminals. Stone E: Close to the present top of the NW wall. An irregular elongated stone, .65m x .13m, featuring a weathered cross with expanded terminals. Stone F: In the SW wall, close to the W angle. An irregularly shaped stone, .4m x .18m, featuring a rather deeply pocked cross with expanded terminals. Faint traces of an enclosing circle survive. Stone G: Close to the present top of the NW wall. An irregularly shaped stone, .46m x .17m, with circular motifs disposed on either side of a cross; all are weathered. Stone H: Close to the present top of the NW wall. A large, roughly rectangular stone, .84m x .21m. A cross with slightly expanded terminals featuring a small incised dot where the arms converge. Disposed on both sides of the cross, at slightly different levels, are two cross-in-circle motifs. That on the right is severely weathered. Stone I: Close to the present base of the NW wall. A stone of parallelogram shape, .32m x .15m, with a thin outer crust of quartz. Four circles are picked through the quartz surface. Stone J: To the right of the previous example on the NW wall. An irregularly shaped stone, .34m x .18m, featuring three concentric circles. Stone K: Towards the N angle of the NW wall, .41m x .16m. A roughly formed cross with expanded terminals on each side of which is a small circle. Stone L: Immediately below Stone A on the S side of the entrance passage. A long stone featuring two crosses; a plain cross at W and, at E, a cross with expanded terminals. The latter is partly buried beneath the infill of the passage. Abutting the S side of the hut is a poorly preserved rectangular structure, 7.15m x 4.45m internally, Its drystone corbelled wall stands to a maximum height of .9m and averages of 1.45m thick. It uses the S wall of the earlier hut as its N wall. The entrance is at E; only its N jamb survives. A large quantity of stone collapse litters the interior, and a lamb shelter is built into the NE angle. The latter feature was misinterpreted by Henry as part of a corn-drying kiln (1957, 94). 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. 1137. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload: 31 July 2013