Bronze Age Hillfort in Northern Ireland Revealed as Major Centre of Power, Trade and Ritual

Bronze Age Hillfort in Northern Ireland Revealed as Major Centre of Power, Trade and Ritual

Archaeologists have uncovered remarkable new evidence showing that Haughey’s Fort in County Armagh was one of the most influential centres of political authority, craft production and ceremonial activity in Late Bronze Age Europe. The findings challenge long-held assumptions about prehistoric Ireland and reveal a sophisticated landscape that flourished more than 3,200 years ago.

Published in the journal Antiquity, the research combines lidar surveys, geophysical investigations, targeted excavations and archival records to reassess the ancient hillfort and its surrounding landscape. The results suggest Haughey’s Fort was far more than a fortified settlement—it was a regional centre of power with extensive trade connections and monumental ceremonial architecture.

Monumental Hillfort Dominated the Bronze Age Landscape

Haughey’s Fort was first established around 1200 BC, centuries before nearby Navan Fort became the ceremonial capital of ancient Ulster.

Image Credit : Antiquity

Researchers identified evidence for more than 200 possible timber structures inside the enclosure, including several unusually large circular buildings believed to have served ceremonial, administrative or communal functions.

Excavations also uncovered extensive evidence of:

• Bronze working
• Gold working
• Specialist craft production
• Imported Continental European artefacts

These discoveries indicate that the settlement maintained long-distance trade networks extending across Bronze Age Europe.

Massive Earthworks Reveal One of Ireland's Largest Hillforts

One of the study's most important discoveries concerns the nearby Creeveroe Earthworks.

Previously interpreted as a ceremonial boundary, new lidar and geophysical surveys reveal the earthworks actually form a vast enclosure covering approximately 109 hectares around Haughey's Fort.

This makes the site one of the largest known prehistoric hillfort complexes in Britain and Ireland.

Researchers believe the enclosure served several purposes, including:

• Demonstrating territorial control
• Reinforcing political authority
• Honouring ancestral traditions
• Defining sacred ceremonial space

Its perimeter also contains burial monuments and deposits of prestigious metalwork, suggesting the boundary held symbolic as well as practical significance.

Evidence of Early Proto-Urban Society

The concentration of domestic buildings, monumental architecture and specialised manufacturing has led researchers to describe Haughey's Fort as one of the strongest examples of Bronze Age proto-urbanism in north-west Europe.

Unlike the isolated farming communities that dominated much of prehistoric Ireland, Haughey's Fort appears to have supported a sizeable permanent population engaged in:

• Metal production
• Long-distance trade
• Political administration
• Religious ceremonies
• Community gatherings

The findings suggest highly organised societies existed in Ireland centuries before the emergence of the Iron Age kingdoms.

Ritual Avenue Linked to Sacred Pool

The research also revealed a strong connection between Haughey's Fort and the nearby King's Stables, an artificial ritual pool located at the foot of the hill.

Geophysical surveys uncovered an impressive 87-metre-long palisade-lined avenue leading directly from the hillfort to the pool.

Archaeologists believe the avenue formed part of a carefully planned ceremonial landscape.

Earlier excavations at King's Stables recovered:

• Moulds for casting leaf-shaped bronze swords
• Animal remains
• Fragments of a human skull

These finds indicate the site was used primarily for ritual deposition rather than everyday activities.

Together, the avenue and ritual pool strengthen the interpretation that Haughey's Fort served both political and ceremonial functions.

A Regional Capital of Bronze Age Ireland

Researchers conclude that Haughey's Fort, the King's Stables and the Creeveroe Earthworks formed an exceptional monumental complex that acted as a regional hub of economic, political and religious life.

The discoveries demonstrate that Late Bronze Age communities in Ireland were capable of constructing monumental landscapes, maintaining international trade networks and organising sophisticated social systems long before the rise of the historic Celtic kingdoms.

The research significantly reshapes understanding of prehistoric Ireland, highlighting Haughey's Fort as one of Europe's most important Bronze Age centres.

Conclusion

The latest research reveals that Haughey's Fort was far more than a defensive hillfort. Its monumental earthworks, extensive craft production, ritual complexes and international trade connections point to a highly organised society that flourished in Ireland over 3,200 years ago. Together, these discoveries position Haughey's Fort among the most significant Bronze Age archaeological landscapes in Europe.

Ancient Roman Port of Puteoli Revealed Beneath the Bay of Naples After Centuries Underwater

Ancient Roman Port of Puteoli Revealed Beneath the Bay of Naples

Archaeologists are uncovering the remarkable underwater remains of Puteoli, the Roman Empire’s principal commercial port before the construction of Portus and the expansion of Ostia. Hidden beneath just three to five metres of water near modern-day Pozzuoli, the submerged city is providing an extraordinary glimpse into the infrastructure that once powered Rome’s Mediterranean trade network.

Image Credit : The American Institute for Roman Culture

The ongoing underwater investigations have revealed warehouses, workshops, porticoes, harbour installations and other commercial buildings preserved beneath the Bay of Naples after centuries of volcanic ground movement. Together, these discoveries are reshaping understanding of one of the empire’s most important economic centres.

Rome's First Great Commercial Gateway

Long before Portus became Rome’s main maritime hub, Puteoli served as the capital’s primary gateway for goods arriving from across the Mediterranean.

Its strategic location on the Bay of Naples connected Rome with trading partners in Egypt, North Africa, the Levant and the wider Mediterranean world, making it one of the busiest ports of the Imperial period.

Over the centuries, however, much of the ancient harbour gradually disappeared beneath the sea due to bradyseism—a geological process unique to the volcanic Campi Flegrei region that causes the land to slowly rise and sink.

Today, almost two kilometres of the ancient harbour district lie underwater.

Advanced Underwater Archaeology Reveals Hidden City

The discoveries form part of an ambitious archaeological programme running from 2021 to 2027 under the direction of underwater archaeologist Dr Michele Stefanile of the Istituto Italiano per l’Archeologia Marittima e delle Strutture Sommerse.

Supported by Ancient Rome Live through its Expandere Conscientiae Lumen (ECL) Grant, the project combines cutting-edge technologies including:

• Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs)
• Underwater photogrammetry
• 3D digital modelling
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
• High-resolution underwater mapping

These techniques allow researchers to digitally reconstruct the ancient port while documenting fragile archaeological remains without disturbing them.

Recent dives conducted by Ancient Rome Live Director Darius Arya and Dr Stefanile revealed exceptionally preserved Roman structures, including a marble-cutting workshop and walls that still retain original wooden elements despite spending nearly two millennia underwater.

Lost Nabataean Temple Rediscovered

Among the project's most remarkable achievements is the rediscovery of the submerged Temple of the Nabataeans, believed to be the only known Nabataean temple ever identified outside the ancient Nabataean Kingdom.

Although the temple was first located during the 1980s, funding shortages prevented further study and its precise location was eventually lost.

After almost twenty years of searching, Dr Stefanile's team relocated the structure during the project's first survey season in 2021.

Excavations revealed that the temple had remained exceptionally well preserved beneath thick layers of Roman concrete added during the 2nd century AD after Emperor Trajan annexed the Nabataean Kingdom.

The discovery offers rare evidence of the diverse communities that lived and traded within Rome's busiest commercial port.

Ancient Granaries Could Rewrite Roman Trade History

Researchers also believe the submerged granaries of the vicus Annianus may become one of the most significant discoveries of the entire project.

These enormous storage facilities once handled grain shipments arriving from Egypt before supplies entered Rome's food distribution system.

The archaeological evidence closely matches ancient written sources, including the famous Sulpicii wax tablets, which document financial transactions and loans linked directly to grain storage in Puteoli.

According to Dr Stefanile, the exceptional preservation of timber construction and internal architectural features provides a unique opportunity to study how Roman granaries operated.

He described the site as potentially the only place in the world where archaeologists can examine the internal organization of a Roman granary in such remarkable detail.

A Forgotten City of Imperial Rome

Despite its historical importance, Puteoli has often remained overshadowed by better-known Roman sites such as Pompeii, Ostia and Rome itself.

Darius Arya believes the city's significance has long been underestimated.

Before Portus became Rome's principal harbour, Puteoli served as the empire's commercial heart, linking merchants, bankers and ships arriving from every corner of the Mediterranean.

The city also stood alongside nearby Misenum, home to the imperial fleet, and Baiae, Rome's luxurious seaside resort, forming one of the wealthiest regions of the ancient empire.

Puteoli itself featured a stadium, an enormous basilica and an amphitheatre built even before the Colosseum, highlighting its importance within Imperial Rome.

Preserving an Underwater Heritage Site

Researchers hope the ongoing investigations will eventually transform the submerged archaeological landscape into an accessible underwater heritage destination.

Digital documentation, conservation work and continued excavation are expected to reveal additional buildings and harbour infrastructure over the coming years.

As exploration continues, Puteoli promises to become one of the world's most important underwater archaeological sites, offering an unparalleled window into the commercial engine that sustained the Roman Empire for centuries.

Conclusion

The submerged city of Puteoli is transforming our understanding of Rome's maritime economy. Preserved beneath the waters of the Bay of Naples by centuries of volcanic ground movement, its warehouses, temples, workshops and granaries reveal the immense scale of the empire's commercial network before Portus rose to prominence. Continued underwater exploration is expected to uncover even more evidence of the city that once served as Rome's greatest gateway to the Mediterranean.