Dunbeg, county Kerry

V 350 973 - Sheet 70

Nearest village: Ventry

The picture above was taken some 25 years after the picture below:

a view across excavations to the restored dry-stone wall in the top picture, with elaborate entrance and internal terraces.
The side-walls of the long, lintelled entrance are recessed to hold sliding defensive beams,
and have guard-chambers on each side with squint-holes for surveillance of the passage.
From below the passage a long souterrain leads out at least as far as the second of 4 parallel defensive stone-faced banks with ditches.

You can see some of the lintels of this souterrain in the centre of the picture.
Inside the fort are remains of a large circular stone hut (or clochán shown in the top picture) which has a square interior.

Part of the fort fell into the sea in 2014.

For comprehensive views of the fort after recent excavation and basic security precautions,
but before the cliff-collapse -
see the Voices from the Dawn website.

<< BACK<<