Shanmuckinish Castle (or Seanmuckinish Castle) (Muck inis, Irish for pig island) is a ruined tower house located in Drumcreehy civil parish of County Clare, Ireland.
The castle is located on the narrowest part of a small peninsula in the townland of Muckinish West, parish of Drumcreehy, close to the N67 coastal road. The closest town is Ballyvaughan.
Historyedit
There are two castles named Muckinish that were reportedly built within three years of each other in the 15th century (Nua means new, Sean means old). Shanmuckinish was repaired around 1836, and as of 1897 was habitable.[1]
Due to the similarities of the names of the two castles the chronology of ownership is confused. Shanmuckinish was also known for a time as "Ballynacragga Castle". This may be an indication that the MacNamara family lived here, bringing the name of their family castle near Dromoland Castle from which they were expelled in 1654. Otherwise, both Muckinish castles were inhabited up to the 19th century by members of the O'Loghlen, Neylon and Blake families.[2]: 81–4
Descriptionedit
Close up view of the ruin
The National Inventory of Architectural Heritage describes the tower house as the "remains of free-standing square-plan single bay four-storey rubble stone-built tower house, c. 1450."[3] It reaches almost to its original height of around 17 m and is partially collapsed, exposing a cross-sectional view of the interior floors. The stairways have not survived. However, the ruin still features the remains of two vaulted ceilings, intramural passages and stairs. The lower windows are defensive loops, while the upper floors feature larger decorative windows. A bawn wall survives and is in relatively good repair due to work in the 18th and 19th centuries. The first floor reception room had a large fireplace in the west wall and still extant internal wall rendering. The house also has a wall walk and machicolations (of the original four only two survive).[2]: 81–4
Referencesedit
^Frost, James (1897). "Burren, or Corcomroe East, Drumcreehy Parish". The History and Topography of the County of Clare. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
^ abCarthy, Hugh (2011). Burren Archaeology. The Collins Press. ISBN9781848891050.
^"National Inventory of Architectural Heritage - Muckinish Castle, County Clare". Department of Arts, Heritage & the Gaeltacht. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
External linksedit
Shanmuckinish Castle at the Clare County Library
January 01, 1970
shanmuckinish, castle, seanmuckinish, castle, muck, inis, irish, island, ruined, tower, house, located, drumcreehy, civil, parish, county, clare, ireland, modern, housesalternative, namesseanmuckinish, castlegeneral, informationstatusruinedtypetower, housecoor. Shanmuckinish Castle or Seanmuckinish Castle Muck inis Irish for pig island is a ruined tower house located in Drumcreehy civil parish of County Clare Ireland Shanmuckinish CastleShanmuckinish Castle and modern housesAlternative namesSeanmuckinish CastleGeneral informationStatusruinedTypetower houseCoordinates53 8 20 N 9 6 9 W 53 13889 N 9 10250 W 53 13889 9 10250Groundbreaking15th century Contents 1 Location 2 History 3 Description 4 References 5 External linksLocation editThe castle is located on the narrowest part of a small peninsula in the townland of Muckinish West parish of Drumcreehy close to the N67 coastal road The closest town is Ballyvaughan History editThere are two castles named Muckinish that were reportedly built within three years of each other in the 15th century Nua means new Sean means old Shanmuckinish was repaired around 1836 and as of 1897 was habitable 1 Due to the similarities of the names of the two castles the chronology of ownership is confused Shanmuckinish was also known for a time as Ballynacragga Castle This may be an indication that the MacNamara family lived here bringing the name of their family castle near Dromoland Castle from which they were expelled in 1654 Otherwise both Muckinish castles were inhabited up to the 19th century by members of the O Loghlen Neylon and Blake families 2 81 4 Description edit nbsp Close up view of the ruin The National Inventory of Architectural Heritage describes the tower house as the remains of free standing square plan single bay four storey rubble stone built tower house c 1450 3 It reaches almost to its original height of around 17 m and is partially collapsed exposing a cross sectional view of the interior floors The stairways have not survived However the ruin still features the remains of two vaulted ceilings intramural passages and stairs The lower windows are defensive loops while the upper floors feature larger decorative windows A bawn wall survives and is in relatively good repair due to work in the 18th and 19th centuries The first floor reception room had a large fireplace in the west wall and still extant internal wall rendering The house also has a wall walk and machicolations of the original four only two survive 2 81 4 References edit Frost James 1897 Burren or Corcomroe East Drumcreehy Parish The History and Topography of the County of Clare Retrieved 8 April 2014 a b Carthy Hugh 2011 Burren Archaeology The Collins Press ISBN 9781848891050 National Inventory of Architectural Heritage Muckinish Castle County Clare Department of Arts Heritage amp the Gaeltacht Retrieved 11 October 2016 External links editShanmuckinish Castle at the Clare County Library Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Shanmuckinish Castle amp oldid 1169423166, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
