| Ballynavenooragh | |
| Native Name: | Baile na bhFionnúrach |
| Native Language: | ga |
| Map Relief: | yes |
| Type: | stone ringfort with clocháns and souterrain |
| Etymology: | Irish "settlement of the white hills"[1] |
| Location: | Ballynavenooragh, Dingle Peninsula, County Kerry |
| Built: | 7th–10th centuries AD |
| Owner: | state |
| Designation1: | Irish National Monument |
| Designation1 Offname: | Cathair na BhFionnúrach Stone fort, huts & souterrain; Ballynavenooragh Stone fort & hut |
| Designation1 Number: | 221.0712 |
Ballynavenooragh [2] is a stone fort and National Monument located in County Kerry, Ireland.[3]
Ballynavenooragh lies on the Dingle Peninsula, 10km (10miles) north of Dingle town, on the western slopes of Mount Brandon. The broader Ballynavenooragh group comprises 40 ringforts, 24 clocháns and 2 cillíní.[3]
This cashel (stone fort, internal diameter[4]) was in use in the 7th–10th centuries, with later reuse in the 13th century.[5] It is similar to the cashel at Leacanabuaile.[6]
It was excavated by Erin Gibbons in the late 1990s. A pit containing organic remains was found — apple, blackberry, hazelnut and grape seeds. Also found were stone tools, pottery, iron knives, a blue glass bead, crucible fragments, two 13th-century coins (silver pennies of Henry III)[7] and two lathe-turned objects. Alder and willow were used for posts, apparently due to a lack of oak in the region.[8]
The cashel contains two clocháns, a fireplace, souterrain and several postholes, and stepped terracing. The gateposts are formed by upright slabs.[9] An oblong chamber in the souterrain is long.[10]