County: Kerry Site name: COARHAMORE
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: —
Author: John Sheehan, South East Kerry Archaeological Society
Site type: Fulacht Fiadh
Period/Dating: Bronze Age (2200 BC-801 BC)
ITM: E 437784m, N 573662m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 51.891491, -10.356853
This excavation, which was carried out over two weeks April and May 1988, was funded by FÁS (Tralee). The site, located in a bog in Valentia island consisted of a fulacht fiadh situated 17m south west of a poorly preserved circular hut site. The former monument was threatened by proposed drainage operations.
Before excavation the site consisted of a mound, oval in plan (10m x 7m), which averaged 1.5m in height. Located at its north-western side was a stone trough 1.4m x 0.95m. The excavated areas totalled 38sq.m and consisted of a number of areas centred on the trough and a 1m wide trench through the mound. This section revealed that the mound was composed of fire shattered stone intermixed with ashy material. It had accumulated directly on the peat and was itself covered by a peat mantle. A loosely constructed wall of large stones retained the mound at its western limits close to the trough. The trough, which was of regular construction, averaged 0.5m in depth. A large stone slab formed its base. It had been constructed in a pit of irregular plan which had been backfilled with loosely packed peat and stone to which a mantle of clay had been added. A working surface had been prepared around the trough by laying clay and stone slabs onto the peat surface.
A sample of peat overlain by the mound of the fulacht fiadh yielded a radiocarbon date of 2950 ± 80B.P. Twenty-six sherds of coarse pottery were discovered in the mound debris, while a siltstone spindle whorl was found in the pit dug to accommodate the trough.
Cahersiveen, Co. Kerry
