The Archaeology of Lough Gur

Lough Gur is one of the richest landscapes of field monuments in Ireland and has been the focus of archaeological research for 150 years. Many portable antiquities have been recovered from the lake and the surrounding countryside. The information gleaned from the results of excavations, surveys, and from the finds is gathered together here to present a synthesis of the archaeology of the area. While the techniques of field excavation have improved and radiocarbon dating is now standard, the pioneering work over a century ago contributed greatly to the understanding of both prehistoric and historic populations that inhabited the area. Allied to excavations was a tremendous amount of survey beginning with in 1912, followed on in 1940s, and latterly using modern survey methods including aerial photography, geophysical survey, and LIDAR. The research at Lough Gur has also been augmented by various antiquarian accounts which documented sites that are no longer visible on the landscape. Rose Cleary is a Senior Archaeologist in the Department of Archaeology, UCC.