Record sheets were made of each layer, and scale drawings and photographs of each find and deposits. Finds were numbered and put in plastic labelled bags and taken to University College, Cork for examination.

But most importantly, the Archaeologists found remains of the post which originally supported the wall of the round hut, and animals pens. These remains were recognised by small dark circle of soil, being remains of the wooden posts. Now all buildings are reconstructed on their original site, where they would have been 1,000 years ago. Several pounds of iron-slag were recovered, but no smelting area was found.

Lios-na-gCon is the only Ringfort reconstructed on its original site in Ireland.

Lios-na-gCon Ringfort is a 10^th Century restored defended farmstead, based on the excavation results during 1987 to 1989. Lios-na-gCon would be the home of a well-to-do farmer and his family. The site would have been a strong economic unit, depending largely on cattle husbandry, dairying, cereals and other animals like pigs, sheep, and goats. Lios-na-gCon is a very unique site, as it is the only Ringfort reconstructed on its original site in Ireland.

Ringforts can be suggested in a placename, such as Lios (Lios-na-gCon - meaning the fort of the hound) Rath-dun, caiseal, cathair referring to a stone fort.

Ringforts would have been occupied in a rural and wooded landscaped, when towns were not developed yet, which were first formed by Viking Settlers. A Ringfort can be described as a space usually circular surrounded by a bank and ditch.

The reason why so many have survived is due to the superstition of farmers - they were known and still are known by some as "Fairy Forts", and if you dared knock down or trespass in the Fort you were doomed with bad luck for eternity. This superstition was a good thing in many ways, as it has preserved these valuable archaeological monuments.

The banks were built for defensive purposes, to keep out wild animals and attackers. The farm animals may have been kept in the ditch during the day, hidden from cattle raiders.

The banks have been restored to their original height. The inside bank was made stronger and higher by a wattle fence or wooden posts, as it is restored today. Some Ringforts put a band of Blackthorn twigs on top, this served the same purpose as modern day barbed wire.

In Celtic Early Christian times, Ireland was not ruled by a single government. Instead the country was divided into around 150 small independent kingdoms called Tuatha.

Lios-na-gCon, would have been part of a tuath, where everyone was connected to a extended family of the male side. Each tuath would comprise of several ringforts, governed by a Petty King. From the entrance of the site, you can see two ringforts and more on the other side of the fort. These Ringforts were probably members of the same family. The occupants could signal to their neighbour, if they were in distress, e.g. in a middle of a cattle raid and would come over and help.

Taxes

Taxes had to be payed annually to the King Church, in the form of food, cattle and milk products. No tuath was regarded as a proper tuath unless it had an ecclesiastical scholar, a churchman, a poet and a King.

The society of the time was governed by complex laws, (breton laws, law tracts) and customs.

The people of the tuath were divided into rich and poor, ranking from various grades of Kings, Nobles, Lords, Farmers, Labourers and the slaves, the lowest people of the society, who had very little rights.

The Brehon Laws and other early literary evidence written from the 5^th Century onwards are an important source for historians, investigating life in Ireland, over a 1000 years ago. Other documentary materials sources include The Annals, sagas, hagiography

The Central Round House

The Central Round House was the family dwelling of the Boaire. They may have been up to 10 - 25 people living here, which would include the farmers wives and children. Polygamy was a widely practised custom in Early Christian times, even though it was prohibited by the Church.

Polygamy was essential to provide a number of male heirs. Other family members include sons, daughters, cousins, uncles, aunts and grandparents. Visitors by day or staying overnight could be Storytellers, poets, singers, iron makers, blacksmith and bronze casting, skin curing, leather making and tooling, fabric weaving, leather working and tooling, dye preparation and cloth dying, fabric weaving and others.

The walls are built by a technique called wattle-and-daub, where hazel rods are weaved in and out of the posts and then mud, hair, dried grass, and animal blood were mixed together and daubed onto the wattling to form a wall.

The Thatch is made of local water-reeds and is about one foot thick. A hole is left at the top to a alleviate smoke from the central hearth. Thatch provides great insulation, its cool inside during a hot day and keeps in the heat on a cold day.

For our reconstruction the roof was thatched by a new-age traveller from cool mountain, in Dunmanway. He offered to thatch in exchange for free food and drink, and even slept there the night it was finished.

The raised beds, are built of wattle and are reconstructed on either side of the house. They would have been downed / dressed with wool and soften more with heather and rushes.

The central hearth / fire would probably only have been used at night-time, for warmth and light or for cooking when the weather was bad outside. There probable would have been meat / fish hung from the rafters over the fire to be smoked, and a large cauldron cooking gruel or meat, or bread baking on hot stones.

There were three southerrains discovered on the site during the excavation. They were used for storing dairy products and a place of refuge in times of attack. There is one only restored here for inspection There used to be a southerrain coming through the central house running to the corner of the ringfort. It collapsed when the ringforts was occupied a around 1,000 years ago.

There are examples of early Christian clothing within the fort. The colour of the dress, showed your rank in society, dark, dull colours signified lower classes and bright colours such as reds, purples symbolised the higher classes e.g. clergy, kings, and lords. Dyes would have been got from wildberries, oak bark, shellfish, flowers,wood etc. All spinning and dying and weaving would have been done by the woman.

It was common for children to be sent away from home to be fostered in Early Christian Ireland, for political and protectional purposes. Boys were fostered from the age of 7 - 17, and girls from the age of 7 - 14. The child was educated and trained in the areas appropriate to their rank. There are stories of the emotional bond between foster brothers in the Irish saga "Tain Bo Cuailgne", between Cuchulainn and Ferdia.

The only available light is the doorway, which would have been covered with cloth or skin at night. The reason why it is so low is defensive purposes, when an intruder tries to enter, a member of the family could stand at the side of the door and strike the daring attacker. Another advantage is that the occupant had a direct view of the entrance way.

If you can imagine the atmosphere here at the time, dark and smokey and the smell of meat smoking and other foods, and up to 20 people at any one time, in very unhygienic conditions. Small animals may have been kept in the round house also.

Laws in Relation to the House

A man who had a grievance in law against another would hold and fast outside the dependant's house. If the dependant ignored him and refused to pay up, he lost his honour price.

Fasting was one of the main ways of obtaining justice, or used to bring evil on someone.

The law-text deals in considerable detail with damage to thatch. The penalties range from a yearling bullock for removing a wisp from the thatch to a milch cow for removing a sheaf. The culprit must also restore the damage which he has done in each case.

For breaking open the door of a house, he must pay 5 sets, the word sets has many meanings, such as jewel, treasure, valuables, a fixed unit of value. For breaking the front door-post, he must pay a yearling heifer. For breaking the backdoor-post, he must pay a yearling bullock.

A law text called Breatha Forloiscthe, "Judgements of arson" - now lost - covered the offence of arson, which was very serious as most houses were build of wood. Some contents survive in commentary material. It states that to distinguish a fine caused with deliberate intent or by negligence and fines for the burning of domestic animals inside.

Stone-lined Pit

The Stone-lined Pit was used as a dump for household refuse. This pit was a "gold-mine" to the archaeologists, where they found preserved seeds of wheat, rye, barley, radish and also hazelnuts. The tip of a deer antler and burnt remains of cattle, sheep and pigs were also found. All these finds, gave a great insight about the occupants farming and eating practises. This pit was originally an underground chamber that ran under the round house. The pit was very important also in helping to date the site, by Radio-carbon Dating, using charcoal remains. The stone-lined pit is restored as it was found during the excavation.

Out-houses or Pens

The Ringfort depends largely on cattle, pigs, sheep in order of importance. The animals usually would have been kept outside, grazing on pastures nearby and brought into their pens at night.

The number of cattle owned were related to the status of the person. The well-to-do (Boaire) farmer at Lios-na-gCon would have the honour price of 10-12 cows. This has to be paid for and any major offences committed against him, e.g. murder, satire, serious injury, refusal of hospitality, theft, violation of his protection etc,.

Cattle were the most common form of currency in Ireland. Other forms were animals, slaves, sets or ounces of silver. Cattle raiding was very popular in early Christian Ireland, you could say a type of dangerous sport or past time. Cattle were important for dairy produce, ploughing, reproduction and only eaten if diseased or else one may have been killed just before the winter. "Booleying" occurred from the 1^st of July to Halloween, where the young sons would move the cattle to higher land and camped there for several months. Proper fences were always emphasised in the law tracts, as fines would be made. Pens were built of wattle hazel rods. The word Buchaill, Irish for boy, comes from the word Bo-chiall- boy / cow keeper.

Pigs - were second of importance. They were mainly kept for their flesh and pork. The breed of pig in Early Christian Ireland was called a "greyhound pig", they were mainly, pink and black in colour. The pigs were easy to feed, they would have been kept in the woods during the day, feeding on fallen acorns, grass and hazelnuts.

Sheep - were kept for their wool, milk and cheeses. Some sheep would have been the fleece type of breed during early Ireland. They have very soft wool and are fairly good jumpers, so a high pens was very essential. Sheep's milk was considered infertile for a king. Goats may also been kept. Wild red deer, which roamed the woods were also hunted for their meat, hides and antlers. Antlers were used for making weapons and tools. Wild boar was also hunted, again for food, but also for sport

Quernstones

Fragments of unused or practised rotary querns were found during the excavation, and a saddle quarn (which are all on displayed on the site). The saddle quarn is an earlier type of quarn, the rotary quarn progressed from the iron age. They were used to grind grain. Milling was a very important activity, as bread and cereal stuffs were the main diet. It was very slow and labour intensive work, usually practised by the women and children.

Grain such as barley, rye and oats etc., were grown by the farmer, in the neighbouring fields and used to make bread and gruel. Gruel is a type of watery porridge, which is described in old texts as been the "smoothest and sweetest of all food". Peas, honey and herbs were often added to give it flavour. A cauldron of gruel would usually have been cooking over the fire continuously. Gruel was more common as it was easier and quick to make.

Bread was levelled, flattened constantly, no yeast. There are references of it being one fist thick. It was cooked and baked on hot stones near the fire or on a grilled over the fire. The preparation was very time-consuming, and labour intensive and finally cooked the bread.

Vegetables and fruits

There are references of vegetables such as peas, onions, kale, celery and cabbage been grown or eaten. Fruits would have been collected from the wild, e.g. blackberries, elderberries, apples etc.

There were up to 17 - 20 types of cheeses made at this time, hard and soft types.

Dairy produce was known as "White Meats", showing their importance to society.

Butter would also have been made and stored in a wooden box, wrapped in cloth.

Food rents were collected during summer and winter by the local lord. They included bacon of finger breath, sacks of malt, 1/2 sack of wheat, and 1 handle of candles.

Entertainment

Entertainment in the form of storytelling and music took place by the fireside outside. News about other families and farmsteads such as deaths, births and marriages was also told.

Souterrain

There were three souterrains discovered during the excavation, one is restored for visitors to inspect.

The souterrain was used as a cellar or the equivalent of our modern fridge. It was used for storing dairy produce and meat. It may also have been used as a place of refuge during time of attack or cattle raid. Souterrain is an archaeological term, the French word meaning underground. The souterrain, that is restored in Lios-na-gCon, travels in a semi-circle, with 3 earth-cut chambers. It twists and turns with difference in width and height, acting as a good defensive mechanism to slow down any intruder.

An air-vent was found in the souterrain, in the centre of the structure. This was to keep food dry, or maybe to prevent the occupants of the souterrain from being smoked out in an attack.

The children of the ringfort, had the responsibility of the care of the souterrain. Being small in size, they could move at ease from chamber to chamber. If a forced entrance was attempted, children with spear or knife could protect the food supplies with in. Most souterrains also had an exit somewhere concealed within the fort.

Ringforts in general

Ringforts began to diminish from 1200's, with the introduction of the castle by the Anglo-Normans, following their 1169 invasion. But most ringforts were still in use up to the time of the famine in the 1800's by poorer farmers or labours, in rural parts of Ireland, but Irish Rulers had built them from some centuries before the invasion. Also with the development of towns and villages, they became more attractive to many, than the hardship of rural life.

The largest ringfort in Ireland is 20 miles from Lios-na-gCon, at Garranes, near Bandon which is dated to the 2^nd Century A.D. It is about 200 metres in diameter, defended with 3 banks. It is debated whether it was the ruling seat of a branch of the Eoganacht dynasty, or someone high in a wealthy class perhaps of skilled craftsmen.

There is also a ringfort of similar size in Ballinaspittle, near Kinsale about 18 miles from Lios-na-gCon, called Ballycatten Fort, which is probably of similar status.

There are 3 identifiable ringforts on the farm land of Clonakilty Agricultural College, and 45 in the Clonakilty area.