This small structure, measuring just 5.5 metres wide, was cleverly cut directly into the steep slope about 18 metres east of a nearby stream. The location would have provided natural shelter from the elements, with the hillside itself forming one wall of the dwelling.

Today, the site is cloaked in a thick tangle of bracken and heather, the kind of hardy vegetation that thrives on Irish hillsides. Despite its overgrown state, the hut’s basic form remains visible; a simple sheltering area that once housed people who knew how to work with, rather than against, the challenging terrain. The structure represents the type of modest dwelling that dotted the Irish countryside for centuries, built by those who understood how to read the landscape for the best spots to settle.

The site was documented by Dr Eugene Costello, whose research has helped preserve knowledge of these often overlooked rural structures. Listed in archaeological surveys from 2016 and 2020, Mín na Saileach 1 serves as a reminder that not all historical sites are grand castles or ancient monuments; sometimes the most evocative glimpses of the past come from these humble shelters carved into the hillsides of Donegal.