Indicated — Cill Buaine

KE088-027004- is located on a fairly steep, S facing slope of Knocknaskereighta mountain, towards the head of a broad valley which is locally known as ‘The Glen’. It affords excellent views to St Finan’s Bay and the Skelligs at W. The site is associated with St Buonia (Beoanigh), who is locally reputed to have been a sister of St Patrick. It has also been suggested that the site was founded by St Brendan or by St Beoanus, his disciple (O’Donoghue 1893, 280-3). Permission to survey the site was refused, and the following description is based on summary notes and the accounts published of it by Lynch (1902a) and Henry (1957). The principal components of the site are located on two stone revetted terraces which extend roughly E-W along the hill-slope. The upper terrace (KE088-027017-) measures c. 13m N-S x c. 50m E-W; it is delimited at N and at both ends by apparently modern field boundaries. On the downslope S side it is revetted by coursed drystone masonry which overlies a series of upright slabs, some of which now incline outwardly. The revetment is best preserved at W, where it is up to 1.7m high and is coped with a series of flat slabs. One of these features a shallow, rectangular depression. The terrace is reached from S by a short flight of well-laid steps, .7m wide. Towards its W end is an oratory, a leacht, a gable-shrine, a cross-slab and a stone cross. 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. 954. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload: 30 July 2013