Moated site, Slievegallane, Co. Cork
On a northwest-facing slope in Slievegallane, County Cork, the remains of what appears to be an earthwork can be found amongst the landscape.
Moated site, Slievegallane, Co. Cork
The site stretches roughly 40 metres from east to west, though much of its original form has been lost to time. When the Ordnance Survey mapped this area in 1942, they noted the structure was already damaged, and since then it has been further levelled. Today, visitors might struggle to make out the banks themselves, but careful observation reveals patches of darker soil that mark where the earthen walls once stood.
This earthwork sits close to a moated site, located just to the east, suggesting this area may have been part of a larger medieval settlement complex. Moated sites were typically constructed between the 13th and 14th centuries in Ireland, often serving as defended farmsteads for Anglo-Norman settlers or prosperous Gaelic families. The earthworks would have consisted of raised banks, possibly topped with wooden palisades, creating a defensive perimeter around the settlement.
The site was officially recorded in the Archaeological Inventory of County Cork, published in 1994, which catalogued thousands of archaeological features across the region. While the physical remains may seem modest today, they represent an important piece of Cork’s medieval landscape, offering clues about how communities organised themselves, defended their holdings, and shaped the countryside during a turbulent period of Irish history.