Water mill

On N side of Lough Mahon in inner reaches of Cork Harbour, on reclaimed land on Little Island. Site is in grounds of Mitsui Denman (Ireland) Ltd., Little Island. Timber remains of two tidal mills uncovered here c. 1978 during extension work to factory; one vertical-wheeled and one horizontal-wheeled mill, both dating c. 630 AD and thereby 'the earliest known example of its type in Europ of Asia (Rynne 1992, 63). Horizontal mill site consisted of wooden framing for inlet channel leading to side timbers and plank flooring for millhouse sub-structure (see reconstruction drawing Rynne 1992, 64, fig. 6). Two hollow-log penstocks found out of position but presumably associated with this mill; they are 'wholly unlike the normal type' being 'comparatively short (flume 1, 2.1m; flume 2, 2.03m), but their most striking feature was the height of their sides, some 81cm' (Rynne 1992, 60). Immediately to S, remains of undershot vertical wheeled mill consist of wooden framing for headrace channel, partially wattle-floored, converging on two-piece wooden penstock (L 3.11m; Wth converging 1.3-0.8m) (Rynne 1998, app. 1, vol. 2). The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Cork. Volume 2: East and South Cork' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1994). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload/revision: 14 January 2009