Moated site, Craan Upper, Co. Wexford
At the base of Craan Hill's south-facing slope in County Wexford lies an intriguing archaeological site that reveals itself only through modern aerial photography.
Moated site, Craan Upper, Co. Wexford
The site consists of two rectangular enclosures, one sitting within the other, visible as cropmarks on Google Earth imagery from July 2018. These subtle traces in the landscape were first spotted by Jean Charles Caillere and documented by Michael Moore in September 2019.
The inner enclosure measures approximately 32 metres along both its west-northwest to east-southeast axis and its north-northeast to south-southwest axis, creating an almost perfect square. It’s defined by narrow ditches, or fosses as they’re known in archaeological terms, on all four sides; though the southern boundary appears fainter than the others. This smaller enclosure sits within a larger rectangular feature measuring roughly 80 metres northwest to southeast and 70 metres northeast to southwest.
The outer enclosure presents an interesting puzzle, as its defining ditch is only visible along certain sections. The fosse can be traced from the southwest corner, around the northern edge, and down to the south, but it leaves a notable gap of about 34 metres wide at the southwest corner. This could represent an original entrance to the site, though without excavation it’s impossible to know for certain. Such double-enclosure sites often date to medieval times and may have served as moated homesteads; defensive structures that provided both practical protection and displayed the status of their inhabitants.





