Crannog

An artificial island in a lake, bog, or march that forms the foundation for a small settlement and upon which a fortified structure is usually built. This structure was typical of prehistoric Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man, especially during the first century AD. The island was constructed from brushwood, stones, peat, and timber, and usually surrounded by a wooden palisade. Most crannogs probably represent single homesteads. The oldest examples in Ireland have yielded early Neolithic material (Bann flakes) and others have Beaker pottery. Most of them, however, are of Late Bronze Age, Iron Age, Early Christian, or medieval. The most interesting is that in Lough Cur in Limerick.

Small artificial island constructed beside or in the middle of a lake, usually defended by a wooden palisade and supporting houses. Crannogs are confined to Ireland and Scotland; their origins are believed to go back to the pre-Roman Iron Age period, and on many of them occupation continued throughout the medieval period. As monuments, crannogs are not very impressive, and perhaps the most interesting is that in Lough Gur, Co. Limerick. Excavations at Lagore crannog revealed an extremely rich royal site of Early Christian date.