Toberyquin

Area

252,841 m² (25.28 ha, 62.48 acres)

Buildings

7 buildings touch it. Their footprint covers 603 m².

Zoning

No zone of a development plan covers it in the national zoning. Outside zoned towns and villages, the county development plan's rural policies apply.

Townland

Toberyquin

Planning applications on this parcel

• 28 Oct 2022Conditional

  a change of house type from that previously permitted under governing planning permission reference number 22/172, together with all associated site works. Planning permission is also being sought for the construction of a domestic garage ancillary to the house

  Permission, 1 home · Limerick County Council, 221163

• 16 Feb 2022Conditional

  the construction of an entrance, dwelling house, domestic waste water treatment system & polishing filter together with all associated site works

  Permission, 1 home · Limerick County Council, 22172

• 8 Dec 2017Conditional

  a change of extension design from that previously approved under planning application reference 16/706 together with all associated site works

  Permission · Limerick County Council, 171149

Source: National Planning Applications, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, CC BY 4.0. Applicants are not shown.

Designated sites

No designated site (Special Area of Conservation, Special Protection Area, Natural Heritage Area or proposed one) touches this parcel.

Recorded monuments around it

This parcel is in the zone of notification of 6 recorded monuments.

• LI013-111001 Settlement cluster
  Description

  Situated on the summit and along the S-facing slope of Knockea (Cnoc Aodha/Hill of Hugh), in rolling pasture with good views in all directions. Folklore collected from Knockea School, Ballysheedy recorded the following tradition about this hill; 'The Hill of Knockea or Cnoc Aodha or Cnoc Cae or Mullach Cae [Cé]. This is the hill from which the Parish gets its name. Said to have been visited by St. Patrick and where a feast had been prepared for him by Lomán the King of the district [Knockea]: Where he is said to have met Nessan whom he afterwards made Abbot of Mungret. The site of the original Church of Knockea is still pointed out - at the foot of the north eastern side of the hill. N.B. Cnoc Aodha or the Hill of Hugh is the present version. Cnoc Cae or Mullach Cae [Cáe], the older name is said by some to mean the "Hill of fire" (The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0525, Page 064; https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4922103/4852432/4948482). In the ninth or tenth century text of the Tripartite Life of Patrick, the baptising and ordination of St Nessán of Mungret (LI013-009002-) by St Patrick on Mullach-Cáe was described as follows; ‘he went to Húi Fidgente [Uí Fidgenti], and Lommán [Lomán], son of Mace Eirc, made a feast for Patrick in Mullach-Cae, to the south of Carn-Feradaig [Carn Fhearaígh/cairn of Fearaíoch/Cahernarry/LI013-061----]; and a man of Patrick‘s household, namely deacon Mantán, was preparing the feast at the king’s. A train of jugglers came to Patrick to ask for food. They suffered no excuse. Go saith Patrick to Lommán and to deacon Mantán that they may help me. But they (refused and) said; It is not public criers that shall bless for us the beginning of our banquet. Then said Patrick: “The boy who arriveth from the north, To him the victory hath been given. Unto Cothraige he is near, With his wether on his back”. At that very hour came a certain youth [named Nessán] along with his mother, carrying a cooked ram on her back, to be brought to the king s feast. Patrick begged the boy to give him the wether [that he might bestow it on the jugglers] to save his honour. The boy at once gave it gladly. The mother, however, was not willing for fear of the king. Patrick gave the food to the jugglers, and straightway the earth swallowed them up. Derg, son of Scirire, of the Déisi, was their leader. And Patrick said that of Lommán’s race there would never be king, nor crown-prince, nor bishop. He said, moreover, of deacon Mantán, that his cloister on earth would not be lofty, and that it would be the dwelling of rabble, and that sheep and swine would come over his remains. He said, however, to Nessán, who had saved his honour: “Thou art mighty of race”. And he baptized him, and ordained him deacon, and founded a church for him, namely, Mungret. And he said to Nessán’s mother as she was excusing herself, that she would not be buried in her son s place, which thing is true’ (Stokes 1887, 203-5). Several well-defined enclosures and hollow ways are visible at this location and are clearly visible on oblique aerial photographs taken 20/07/1968 and 23/08/2000 (CUCAP AVT006-008; ASIAP (132) 12-14). This earthwork complex classified as a deserted settlement in the Limerick RMP (1997) was described in 1826 as; 'the Hill of Knockhay, which appears to have been very strongly fortified, as on it are still to be seen the remains of square and round buildings encircled in the usual manner by a deep but dry fosse, and around the entire hill is a strong rampart of earth and stone. A quantity of human bones have been dug up here and some remains of iron instruments' (Fitzgerald 1826-7 296-7; O'Flanagan 1929, 106). These earthworks were described by O'Kelly (1967, 72) as 'a complex of earthworks and enclosures which are marked by impressive banks and ditches…within some can be seen what appear to be house or hut foundations'. Two sites within the complex were excavated by O'Kelly in 1960; a rath (Site II) (LI013-111002-) and a burial enclosure (Site I) (LI013-111003-), both tentatively dated by the excavator to the Early Christian period. The focus of the complex is a roughly triangular area defined by field boundaries to N and W and by a grassed over trackway to E (see plan in O'Kelly 1967, Fig. 1). However banks are also visible immediately N of the field boundary and E of the trackway. The W half of the excavated rath (LI013-111002-), which was bisected by a field boundary, is visible in the adjoining field on aerial photographs. A potential enclosure was identified in the adjoining field to SW of the complex. A cairn (LI013-029----) and standing stone (LI013-210----) have been identified nearby to the S. Re-evaluation of this earthwork complex by Talbot (2019, 89) has suggested that these earthworks represent the remains of 'royal residence, but also indicates that it was a place of privileged burial, ritual and ceremony'. Talbot (2019, 89-93) described this earthwork complex as follows; 'Three main zones can be identified: south-west, central and east, the latter representing the most intensively used area of the site. Within the latter zone are three large rectilinear enclosures — E1, E2 and E3 — which seem to be relatively early in date. This is suggested by the fact that smaller, often curvilinear enclosures seem to be appended to them, reusing the rectilinear enclosing elements. E1, a rectilinear enclosure, 46m east to west, is double-banked to the west and south, but its eastern banks seem to have been removed. It may have extended into the field to the north, or the modern field bank may perpetuate the line of its northern boundary. Abutting this at the south-west is E2, a D-shaped enclosure, the largest in the complex, 50.5m north to south externally. Again, it is double-banked and its banks are up to 1.8m high in places. This is relatively central and the highest point on the hill, potentially underscoring its importance. Abutting E1 and E2 are E4, a rath-like enclosure, and E5, which also seems to post-date a large secondary enclosure, E6, and might therefore be considered a relatively late (tertiary) addition. Comparable in size to E1 and E2, E3 is located on the eastern edge of the complex (57.3m north to south externally). In contrast to the central enclosure, E3 is univallate. Interestingly, there is no evidence of an eastern bank. Instead, the cliff edge itself seems to have been utilised to delimit the monument. There is a probable funnelled entrance at the south-west. Of the relatively early features, E3 attracted the greatest number of secondary enclosures. To the north, south and west, relatively large curvilinear enclosures were appended to it (E6, E11 and E14). They are quite consistent in size, form and position in relation to E3. E6 is in relatively poor condition, having been overlain by E5, as noted above. E11, a little smaller than the other two, seems to have been extended at some point (E13) and subsequently divided internally by linear ditches (E12). A cup-shaped feature in the south-west of E11 possibly represents traces of a building. E14, the third and largest curvilinear enclosure appended to E3, incorporates a (perhaps tertiary) complex of what appear to be around eight curvilinear ‘huts’, mostly clustered in the northern third of the enclosure. The remaining two each occupy an additional third of E14 and are separated from the others by linear banks radiating from near its centre. The final feature in this eastern zone is a long linear ditch running south from E14 along the cliff face to the base of the hill, thereby defining this side of the site. Its stratigraphic relationship to E14 is unclear, but the fact that it does not seem to continue along the cliff edge further north raises the possibility that it is a relatively late feature, post-dating E3 and E14. The central area of the Knockea complex has far fewer earthworks. Indeed, it is a relatively blank, linear area, a natural avenue providing access to the co

• LI013-111002 Ringfort - rath
  Description

  Only the E half of the earthwork survives above ground immediately E of a stone wall which forms the townland boundary with Toberyquin, on the S-facing slope of Knockea Hill with panoramic views to E, S and W. Monument, depicted as circular enclosure (diam. c. 25m) bisected by townland boundary running N-S on 1841 ed. OSi six-inch map. Enclosing element of monument has been levelled on W side of the townland boundary. Present remains consist of a semi-circular shaped area (dims. 15m N-S; 12m E-W) enclosed by an earth-and-stone bank (int. H 0.2m; Wth 2.3m; ext. H 0.2m) which is now visible on the E side of the townland boundary. The interior is uneven and slopes down to the SW. A season of archaeological excavation in 1960 by Professor O'Kelly of UCC (O Kelly 1967, Site II) revealed at least two periods of activity at the site. In the first, a narrow shallow ditch was cut to surround a circular area in which a number of wattle huts or houses had been built, with no evidence of an enclosing bank. In the second, a circular enclosure of similar size had been formed by digging a deep ditch with the ditch material forming the core of an internal bank faced with a wooden palisade inside and out. It appears as though the bank and palisade were constructed while the ringfort was inhabited and did not represent a resettling of the site after an absence, but rather a re-defending of the site during a time of upheaval. At a later stage an angular wattle house was built partly on the ditch which had been filled partly with the weathered palisade bank. Several bone implements were recovered from the site as well as some evidence of iron smelting in the vicinity. The excavator dated the site to the Early Medieval period. This excavation has been recently re-evaluated by Talbot (2019, 93-4) who described the monument as follows; 'O’Kelly’s Site II (Fig. 7) is comprised of a shallow curvilinear enclosure, 50cm deep, which was possibly cut as a palisade trench and ‘not a ditch proper’, as O’Kelly termed it (O’Kelly 1967, 84). O’Kelly identified ten cut features within this enclosure as ‘houses’, though this cannot confidently be said of all of these features, and a high degree of variation in terms of morphology potentially indicates that they had differing uses and dates. O’Kelly termed this group of monuments ‘Period I’ (ibid., 86). The enclosure shown in Fig. 7 has been interpreted as the primary enclosure and, as has been stated previously, was likely an intentionally shallow-ditched feature. The majority of the house features lie within the primary ditch enclosure, indicating that they were perhaps broadly contemporary with it (ibid.). Houses J and K, however, seem to underlie the primary ditch feature, indicating that they preceded the construction of the enclosing monument. Feature or House J consists of a curving ditch 30cm wide and 15cm deep and is suggestive of a curvilinear or circular hut. A secondary period is indicated by the construction of a much larger secondary enclosure consistent with more typical ringfort morphology (ibid., 89). This secondary period enclosure was 30.6m in diameter, bivallate in form and likely palisaded. We might assume, given the recognisable form of the secondary ringfort and its morphology, that it likely dates from some time within the primary period of ringfort construction between AD 600 and 900 (O’Sullivan et al. 2013, 64). The direct relationship between the two proposed periods of occupation is uncertain. O’Kelly considered that the absence of an ‘old turf line’ between the two phases may be indicative of continuation. However, modern agricultural disturbance made the exact determination of this impossible. Similarly, the house forms identified in ‘Period I’ of Site II may be compared with more recently excavated sites displaying similar morphologies. From O’Kelly’s publication on the season of excavation undertaken at Knockea, it seems that the features marked as J and K (Fig. 7) underlie the ‘Period I’ shallow enclosing ditch. Curvilinear house forms are present in Irish archaeology at a very early stage and the fact that both features J and K are earlier than the construction of the primary enclosing feature may suggest that they represent settlement activity at this site at a date earlier than the sixth century. In terms of the house structures associated with Site II, House A is in a unique position to supply a suggested date for the construction of the primary ditch, being situated just inside the primary ditch and covered with primary habitation refuse (O’Kelly 1967, 86). This is a house of rectilinear form with straight sides and curved or apsidal corners, indicated by the foundation trench. Comparisons may be drawn with some of the houses excavated at Fishamble Street in Dublin, most notably the Type 1 Hiberno-Norse houses. The average Type 1 Hiberno-Norse house is rectangular in plan, often with a door on each end and a floor space divided lengthwise into three ‘naves’. Within the central nave is often a stone-lined fireplace (Wallace 1992, 9). While the rectilinear plan and the presence of a central fireplace are comparable to the Type 1 houses and may suggest that settlement was taking place during the tenth and eleventh centuries at Knockea, there are a number of inconsistencies which might suggest that House A at Knockea does not derive from the same tradition. Firstly, there was clear evidence that House A contained only one entrance, presumably at the north or east. Secondly, no internal divisions were identified within the structure. Thirdly, although a central hearth was present, it was not stone-lined and the first fire was likely lit on the ground (O’Kelly 1967, 86). Finally, the internal area of House A, measuring 20m², is far smaller than the average floor space identified amongst Type 1 Fishamble Street houses'. See attached labelled Hillshade image of enclosures/earthworks on Knockea, taken from Talbot 2019, 91 and Fig. 7 of Site II taken from Talbot 2019, 92. Compiled by: Denis Power Revised by: Caimin O'Brien Date of revised upload: 23 March 2022

• LI013-111003 Burial ground
  Description

  Situated on the SE-facing slope of Knockea Hill, in rolling pasture with good views to E, W and S. Roughly square-shaped area (dims. 8.4m E-W; 8.2m N-S) enclosed by an earthen bank (Wth 2.4m; ext. H 0.4m) faced internally with a dry-stone revetment (H 0.3m), with an entrance to W (Wth 0.9m). Excavated by professor O'Kelly of UCC in 1960 (O'Kelly 1967) who found that the area within the revetment contained the remains of at least sixty six inhumations as well as disarticulated bones. The majority of the inhumations were extended and orientated E-W with the head at the W in all but one case where it was at the E. Three child burials were orientated N-S. The graves were mostly simple pits without any lining. There was a crouched burial in the SW of the site. At the E edge of the NW quadrant a child burial was contained in a well-marked pit, the W and S sides of which had been set with small boulders. The fill of the pit immediately over the child skeleton contained 111 small water-rolled pebbles; 83 of which were white quartz and 28 various brown sandstones. No concentration of pebbles occurred anywhere else on the site. O' Kelly also recorded the possible foundation trenches of hut sites which pre-dated the burial enclosure and possible foundation trenches of a hut site which post dated the enclosure from which was recovered a blue glass bead with a white spiral meander. He suggested that the absence of grave goods indicated an Early Christian date for the enclosure. This excavation has been recently re-evaluated by Talbot (2019, 94-6) who described the monument as follows; 'Site I (Fig. 8) is located around 20m to the north-east of Site II [LI013-111002-] and consists of an almost perfect square enclosure, 18m by 18m externally, defined by a U-shaped ditch (2m wide and 0.8m deep on average) surrounding a substantial bank, 3m thick and 1m high, faced with stones at the interior to a height of 0.7m. Post-holes on the top of the bank indicate that it was topped by a palisade. At the centre of the western side is a substantial entranceway, which is partially stone-lined, creating a causeway. The ‘entrance’ to the causeway was marked by a pair of posts. The excavation uncovered 66 individuals buried within the enclosure, the majority of whom were orientated east–west. A number of exceptions were observed, including a west–east-orientated burial and three orientated north–south. There was also one instance of a crouched inhumation and a grave containing an adult female and a child. The majority of individuals (38 of the 66) were classified as non-adults (O’Kelly 1967, 74–7). A number of finds were also uncovered during the excavation. These were not clearly associated with any grave and therefore cannot be termed grave goods, although O’Kelly noted that ‘it may be that they were buried originally with particular individuals whose graves were disturbed at the insertion of later burials’ (ibid., 77). None of these finds is closely datable. They comprise four ‘strike-a-light’ stones, a stone disc, an ‘ornamented pebble’, an unstratified glass bead of blue colouring and a bone comb fragment (ibid., 79–82). In terms of environmental remains, a piece of honeysuckle charcoal was taken from the lowest level of the fill of a ditch in the south-east corner of the site, which overlay the bank of the burial enclosure and which may have functioned as a drain, as well as a deposit of oats whose exact location was not recorded. O’Kelly interpreted Site I as a ‘Christian period cemetery’ that, taking into account the number of individuals interred, likely served a local community living on the site (ibid., 83). As O’Kelly recognised, the burial enclosure excavated at Knockea I was an unusual find: ‘so far as I am aware, nothing quite like it has been recorded in Ireland up to now’ (O’Kelly 1967, 83). As we shall see, however, some parallels — albeit not exact — have been excavated since. They include Kilmainham, Co. Meath, an unroofed rectilinear enclosure defined by a post-and-plank fence, but open to the west, with two associated burials (Walsh 2011). A sample of animal bone from the primary fill (C2264) of the enclosure produced a date range of cal. AD 143–343 (UBA-15488; 1769±23 BP), while a birch charcoal deposit (C2244) representing in situ burning was dated to cal. AD 433–60 (UBA-12908; 1523±30 BP), suggesting the structure may have been built in the Late Iron Age and was potentially in use at the start of the early medieval period. The burials also date from the fifth and/or sixth centuries. Walsh tentatively suggested parallels with Romano-Celtic ‘sanctuaries’ or ‘temples’ identified in Wales and England for the structure at Kilmainham (ibid., 12). Similarities with Knockea Site I include its rectilinear form and western entrance, but there are also marked differences, such as the lack of a bank, the number of burials and their position outside the enclosure. Another potential parallel is Marlhill, Co. Tipperary (Molloy 2009a, 184; 2009b, 166). Here an Iron Age phase comprised a penannular ring-barrow with associated cremations, one of which was dated to 40 cal. BC–AD 130 (UBA-232706; 1950±40 BP). The early medieval phase comprised a rectilinear enclosure, dated to cal. AD 540–650 (UBA-233935; 1500±40 BP), with two associated inhumations, one located within the northern entrance of the enclosure. It was delimited by a fence and a centrally placed post-hole raises the possibility that it was roofed, unlike the Kilmainham and Knockea enclosures. Walsh, in his discussion of the site at Kilmainham, has interpreted this monument as being potentially inspired by the early medieval ‘mortuary houses’ of north-west Wales, which in turn have been linked to the Roman sanctuary sites to which he relates Kilmainham (Walsh 2011, 12). Aside from the rectilinear form of the enclosure, its walls and the inclusion of inhumations, there are more apparent differences between Knockea Site I and the Marhill structure. Nevertheless, though different in many respects, it is possible that both have some connection with such sub-Roman ritual and burial enclosures. The predominance of west–east-orientated inhumations at Knockea and the broad similarities with sites in Ireland and Britain support the possibility that this burial ground was established in the fifth or sixth century, or possibly in the seventh. Potentially, then, it was established around the same time as Donaghmore'. See attached labelled Hillshade image of enclosures/earthworks on Knockea, taken from Talbot 2019, 91 and Fig. 8 of Site I taken from Talbot 2019, 94. Compiled by: Denis Power Revised by: Caimin O'Brien Date of revised upload: 23 March 2022

• LI013-209 Cairn - unclassified
  Description

  Situated on the SE-facing slope of a steep hill in rolling pasture c. 20m N of a field boundary and 20m S of a small limestone quarry. There are good views to NE, E and SE. Sub-circular area (diam. 8.5m) defined by a gentle scarp (Wth. 1.9m; D 0.5m). Several stones are visible in the scarp and in the centre of the site. The mound is uneven, and is partly denuded.

• LI013-210 Standing stone
  Description

  Situated on the S quadrant of a possible levelled cairn (LI013-209----) located on a SE-facing slope of a steep hill in rolling pasture with good views to E, W and S. Irregular limestone upright boulder (H 0.7m; Wth. 0.9m Th. 0.35-0.4m).

• LI013-211 Cairn - unclassified
  Description

  Situated on the S-facing slope of Knockea in rolling pasture with good views in all directions. Much quarrying has taken place in the field. Partial oval area (diam. 7m E-W) enclosed from E to W by at least seven boulders.

Architectural heritage

No building of the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage stands on this parcel.

Designated sites: National Parks and Wildlife Service. Recorded monuments: Sites and Monuments Record, National Monuments Service. Buildings: National Inventory of Architectural Heritage. Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, CC BY 4.0. Works at or in relation to a recorded monument need two months' written notice to the National Monuments Service (National Monuments (Amendment) Act 1994, section 12).

Ground and risks

Radon

At the centre of this parcel, about 1 in 5 homes in this area is likely to have high radon levels. Testing a home

Landslides

The 1:50,000 map rates the landslide susceptibility here as moderately high, moderately low, low, partly inferred.

Terrain model

No LiDAR survey of the Office of Public Works covers the centre of this parcel.

Flooding

The Office of Public Works publishes its flood maps on floodinfo.ie.

Radon Risk Map of Ireland, Environmental Protection Agency, and Landslide Susceptibility Classification, Geological Survey Ireland, both under CC BY 4.0. LiDAR: contains Irish Public Sector Data (Geological Survey Ireland & the Office of Public Works) licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.

Download this parcel as DXF, in Irish Transverse Mercator metres, with its neighbours and buildings, for a drawing program. GeoJSON, in WGS 84, suits a map, and KML opens in Google Earth.

Registered freehold land, Tailte Éireann, CC BY 4.0. A parcel is the land of a title, not an address. The owner's name is in the Land Registry of Tailte Éireann: a copy of the folio can be ordered on landdirect.ie, for a fee.