Neolithic houses in Ireland: a broader perspective

Abstract

IntroductionOver 90 structures have been identified as probable houses dating to the Neolithic period in Ireland (Grogan 2996; Cooney 1999; FIGURE 1; TABLES 1- 3). While there is a considerable variation in size and form two principal types are discernible, the large rectangular buildings of the Early Neolithic and circular or oval structures that have a much wider chronological span. In the past some of these have been readily accepted as houses while other, generally more ephemeral, structures havc occasionally been classified as having more temporary or specialist functions