Islands of Ireland: Fishtrap and kelp industry relics at Illaunacullin, County Cork

Medieval fishermen would have been busy at this West Cork swampland island as fish was a diet staple and this island's layout meant it was handy for catching fish

The Causeway from Ringarogy, County Cork, separating Illaunacullin from the estuary of the Ilen. Picture: Dan MacCarthy

For this swampland where there is probably enough mud to fill Croke Park five times over, there is still surprisingly enough of interest to the historian or archaeologist. This area is the estuary of the River Ilen which flows from the hills above Dunmanway through Skibbereen to enter the sea at Baltimore.

The estuary is dominated by the comparatively huge Ringarogy which is connected to the mainland by a causeway. At its eastern edge is the minute Illaunseer, possibly the burial site of the famous medieval architect, the Goban Saor. On the other side of the causeway is Tinker’s Island which has a major prehistoric monument in the shape of a passage tomb.