Every place has a story to tell but, with the passing of
time, not all stories are preserved. The archaeological
discoveries presented in this book afford a rare chance
to hear from people whose voices would be lost were it
not for the opportunities for discovery presented by the
construction of the M8 Fermoy–Mitchelstown motorway
in north County Cork.
Hidden Voices documents a major programme of
archaeological investigations at 24 sites on the route of the
motorway, which traverses broad plains of rich pastureland
and the western foothills of the Kilworth Mountains.
A diverse range of archaeological sites was discovered,
representing the day-to-day life, work and beliefs of the
communities who occupied this landscape over the last
10,000 years.
Readers will learn of Mesolithic nomads fishing the
River Funshion and of Neolithic farmsteads excavated at
Gortore, Caherdrinny and Ballinglanna North. Bronze Age
houses were found at Ballynamona, Gortnahown and
Kilshanny, and a rare Iron Age example at Caherdrinny.
Life in prehistory was precarious. There were burials at
Ballynacarriga of Early Bronze Age women and children,
including a young woman and her unborn child. But there
was also the comfort of religion. Timber circles uncovered
at Ballynacarriga are evidence of ceremonial practices in
Later Neolithic times.
The accounts of the excavations of an early medieval
cliff-edge fort at Ballynacarriga, and cob-built houses and
a blacksmith’s dwelling at Gortnahown move the story
into the historical era. The iron-working evidence indicates
highly specialised bell manufacture
and brazing. The early 12th-century
manuscript known as Críchad an
Chaoilli provides a backdrop to these
medieval sites, with its evidence for
territorial boundary evolution and
land ownership in the old kingdom
of Fir Maige (Fermoy).
The investigations along the M8
were undertaken by Eachtra
Archaeological Projects for Cork
County Council, with funding
from the National Roads
Authority (now Transport
Infrastructure Ireland).

Dr Penny Johnston is a graduate of University
College Cork and the University of Sheffield.
Her research interests include a broad range of
topics in cultural heritage, from oral history to
environmental archaeology. She worked on the
M8 Fermoy–Mitchelstown motorway project
while a post-excavation manager at Eachtra
Archaeological Projects.

Jacinta Kiely is a graduate of University College
Cork. She is a founder member of Eachtra
Archaeological Projects and has worked on a
number of national road schemes including the
M8 Fermoy–Mitchelstown motorway