What is recorded here

Kealduff Upper holds a small sandstone boulder where three grooves break from a cup-and-ring pattern to join an L-shaped channel, forming a geometric trap on a rough eastern slope. The deep cup may be erosion or a marker for water, while the sharp angular lines suggest human intention rather than random weathering. This is not a smooth display piece but a working surface, perhaps used to test tools, measure shadow, or direct rain across stone. The nearby trackways imply the boulder sat inside a lived landscape where people returned often enough to shape it and be shaped by it.

The upper surface of this small, block-like boulder measures .8m x .75m. It is decorated with a cup-and-three rings motif from which three grooves extend. The first extends radially from the cupmark and turns abruptly beyond the outer ring to join an L-shaped groove. The second, which also joins this groove, extends from the outermost ring. The third groove, diametrically opposite the first, also extends from the outermost ring. See attached drawing of rock art taken from O'Sullivan and Sheehan 1996, Fig. 65 (a) 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. 334. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. In rough pasture (148m OD) with abundant boulders, on an E-facing slope; Good views of River Behy valley to E are otherwise obscured by field boundary N->NE. A slightly rough and fractured sandstone rock (dims. 0.75m N-S; 0.65m E-W; H 0.6m) with a rectangular decorated surface (dims. 0.50m N-S; 0.32m E-W) which has a SE-facing aspect. A cup-and-three-ring motif (overall diam. 17cm; cup diam. 3cm; D 12mm; ring Wth 1cm; D 2-3mm) is off-centre to NE of decorated surface. The cupmark is very deep, possibly as a result of natural erosion; A linear groove (dims. L 18cm; Wth 1cm; D 2-3mm) extends from outer ring at N. A second linear groove extends from outer ring (dims. L 10cm; Wth 2cm; D 3-4mm) at S and a third linear goove (dims. L 18cm; Wth 1cm; D 3mm) extends from the cupmark at SE; Both join a linear groove (L 29cm; Wth 1-1.5cm; D 3-4mm) perpendicular to S which has a short return at E end. A possible pair of conjoined cupmarks (overall dims. 5cm WSW-ENE; cup diam. 2cm; D 5mm) are adjacent to E. Trackway (long-axis NW-SE) c. 6m to W and a second trackway (long-axis ENE-WSW) is adjacent to S. Compiled by: Alison McQueen and Vera Rahilly Date of upload: 5 July 2017

This rock art, featuring a cup-and-three-rings motif with associated grooves, is likely from the Neolithic or Bronze Age period. Such motifs are commonly associated with ritual or ceremonial practices, possibly linked to water sources or territorial markers in prehistoric landscapes.

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