| Abstrakt: |
In the Burren, Co. Clare, early medieval enclosed settlements are mainly of drystone construction, in the form of cashels, with earthen-banked raths comprising only a small minority. The enclosing elements of most of these settlements are circular, as in the rest of Ireland. However, in some isolated upland areas of the Burren, cashel-like enclosures of rectilinear plan are almost as common. Based on a satellite image and digital map survey of around 1,000 circular and rectilinear settlements, 152 rectilinear cashel and enclosure sites were identified. Of these, 66 were the subject of a field survey of their remaining above-ground features. This paper looks at drystone rectilinear cashels and enclosures as a monument class, comparing aspects of their construction and associated features, such as gateways and souterrains, with the better-known circular cashel settlements. Two types of settlement are identified among the rectilinear cashels -- those with heavy walls and a more common, lighter-walled type. The available evidence points to both types being first constructed during the early medieval period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
