1993:015 - THE PEARL, Trá na Fearla, Allihies, Cork

NMI Burial Excavation Records

County: Cork Site name: THE PEARL, Trá na Fearla, Allihies

Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number:

Author: Colin Breen, Institute of Irish Studies, Queen

Site type: Wreck: unclassified

Period/Dating: Post Medieval (AD 1600-AD 1750)

ITM: E 457651m, N 545498m

Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 51.643902, -10.056896

In 1613 an Honourable East India Company ship was scuttled near Allihes in West Cork. Over the last few years a number of ship's timbers and cannon balls have been washed up on Trá na Fearla leading local researcher Penny Durrell to believe that this beach was the wreck site of the 'Pearl'. Extensive sand erosion had been taking place on the beach over the last number of years due to the erection of a breakwater. It was felt that this erosion may have been contributing to the exposure of the wreck underwater. Subsequently I.U.A.R.T. was issued a licence to carry out a pre-disturbance survey of the inlet to assess the nature of any wreck remains.

No exposed hull structure was visible on the sea-bed but a number of isolated ship's timbers were found which were subsequently dated to the 17th century. A large peat deposit with fossilised timbers was also found eroding from the sea-bed.

Monitoring on the site is to continue and further work may take place in 1994.