Moated site, Bray Lower, Co. Kildare
In the townland of Bray Lower, County Kildare, the faint traces of what appears to be a medieval moated site can only be glimpsed from above.
Moated site, Bray Lower, Co. Kildare
Captured in two aerial photographs from 1968 and 1970, the site reveals itself as a cropmark; a narrow fosse that once enclosed a rectangular area measuring roughly 50 metres north to south and 40 metres east to west. Today, no visible trace of this enclosure survives at ground level, with centuries of tillage having smoothed away any surface features that might have once marked this defensive boundary.
The aerial photographs tell a more complete story than the land itself now can. The rectangular enclosure likely represents a moated site, a type of medieval settlement where a farmstead or manor house would have been surrounded by a water-filled ditch for both defence and status. These sites were particularly common in Ireland between the 13th and 15th centuries, often associated with Anglo-Norman settlers who brought this architectural tradition from England. About 40 metres to the east-southeast, a second levelled enclosure is also visible in the photographs, suggesting this area may have hosted multiple defensive structures or agricultural enclosures during the medieval period.
The discovery and documentation of these features through aerial photography demonstrates how modern archaeological techniques can reveal Ireland’s hidden medieval landscape. Cropmarks like these form when buried archaeological features affect plant growth; crops grow differently over buried ditches and walls, creating patterns only visible from above during certain conditions. This particular site was compiled into the archaeological record by Gearóid Conroy and uploaded to the database on 20 December 2013, ensuring that even though the physical remains have vanished beneath the plough, the knowledge of what once stood here is preserved for future generations.