Rock art in Derreeny

This boulder with a flat upper surface, .85m x .8m x .5m high, is located in an area of rock outcrop on the N side of a low rise. The motifs, though lightly pocked, are clearly discernible. A series of meandering grooves connects five cupmarks, while ten others are scattered across the rock's surface. Three large, lightly pocked circular areas with an average diameter of .08m occur at E, along with a number of irregular patches of pocking. There are three cup-and-rings, one with a radial groove extending from the ring to an external cup. 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. 287. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload: 28 July 2013 In upland heath pasture, on a short NW-facing slope (165m OD), located between a parallel set of drystone walls (long axis NE-SW) and two level areas of ground; Excellent view of Ballaghbeama Gap to NW. A smooth and unfractured sandstone boulder (dims. c. 0.64m N-S ; 0.8m E-W; max. H 0.45m) which has a roughly diamond-shaped decorated surface (dims. 0.55m N-S; 0.70m E-W) which is generally level with a slight NW-facing tilt. The rock art is very faint and weathered and consists of seventeen cupmarks (diam. 2-6cm, D 3-5mm) of which two pairs are each joined by a groove and one cupmark which has a radial groove extending from its N side. Two cup-and-one ring (diam. 10cm) with cupmark (diam. 3cm; D 4mm) and ring (Wth 1.0cm; D 3mm). The cup-and-ring motifs have pickmarks in the space between the cup and the ring. There are three roughly circular areas (diam. 5-10cm) defined by pickmarks (D 3-4mm). Another small, circular area of pickmarks (diam. 5cm) is joined by a short groove to a cup-and-ring (diam. 10cm), at NE area of stone surface. There is a concentration of c. 100 pickmarks (diam. 4-5mm) in the NW area of the decorated surface and a smaller cluster of pickmarks at S. There are linear and curvilinear grooves (Wth 1.5cm, D 4mm) off-centre to NE of the stone surface. Compiled by: Alison McQueen and Vera Rahilly Date of upload: 8 March 2017

Likely dating to the Late Neolithic or Bronze Age, the meandering grooves may represent symbolic or ritual markings, possibly linked to water or movement. Their precise meaning remains unclear, but such motifs are often associated with territorial, ceremonial, or mythological themes in prehistoric art.