County: Cork Site name: CASTLEDONOVAN
Sites and Monuments Record No.: CO119-017002 Licence number: 02E1569
Author: Linda Hegarty and Colm Moloney, Headland Archaeology Ltd.
Site type: Castle - tower house
Period/Dating: Late Medieval (AD 1100-AD 1599)
ITM: E 511304m, N 549672m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 51.692435, -9.282959
Excavations were carried out on behalf of the National Monuments section of the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government prior to the conservation and restoration of part of the south-west corner of Castledonovan, Co. Cork. The works received ministerial consent as required under Section 5 of the National Monuments (Amendment) Act 2004, consent number C0002.
Full resolution was carried out from August to September 2005, with further work being conducted in late November. The south-west corner of the tower-house was identified. Gaining entry from the west and south was a short climb up a steeply sloped rock outcrop aided by cuts/steps in the bedrock. This was sheltered from the north by a portion of the bawn wall perched on the summit. Passing the bawn wall on the left, entry to the tower is through a lancet head door with a large threshold stone. Inside the door is a small guardroom, with paving stones in places to level over areas of uneven bedrock. Straight ahead is the vaulted ground-floor chamber; to the left, over another large threshold stone, is the stairwell, of which the first two treads were unearthed.
Unit 4b, Europa Enterprise Park, Midleton, Co. Cork
