Robert M Chapple, Archaeologist

Portaferry Castle is a small 16th century Tower House built by William Le Savage. The Chapple Family are fairly regular visitors to Portaferry, mainly to see the Exploris Aquarium and I’ve written before about the Tower House [ Here ] and shared some 3D photos [ Here ]. The image in this post is a quick snapshot taken while passing on our way to the aquarium at the end of December last (2016). The interior of the castle is filled with scaffolding, apparently part of a conservation effort to secure the fabric of the building against decay and preserve it for another generation. All this scaffolding is an arresting sight and it made me reflect on how the castle must have looked during construction in the  16th century. I doubt that anyone at the time imagined that it would still be a prominent local feature in the 21st century and that we'd be spending money to preserve it. I wonder which of the buildings we're putting up today will be around in the 26th century? ... ...

For anyone interested, the Ulster Museum is hosting The Archaeology of Atlantic Crossings: Early Explorations, Trade and Migration on Saturday 7th May 2016. As noted in the poster, the day-conference is free, but advance booking is advised . It looks like it's going to be an excellent day, with a collection of great speakers!