The Eask Tower is a solid stone tower on the top of Carhoo Hill, in County Kerry

County Kerry

Kerry means the "people of Ciar" which was the name of the pre-Gaelic tribe who lived in part of the present county. The legendary founder of the tribe was Ciar, son of Fergus mac Róich. In Old Irish "Ciar" meant black or dark brown, and the word continues in use in modern Irish as an adjective...

, Ireland

Republic of Ireland

Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...

, over-looking Dingle harbour

Dingle

Dingle is a town in County Kerry, Ireland. The only town on the Dingle Peninsula, it sits on the Atlantic coast, about 49 kilometres southwest of Tralee and 71 kilometres northwest of Killarney....

.

Eask Tower was built in 1847 in order to guide the ships

Ship

Since the end of the age of sail a ship has been any large buoyant marine vessel. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size and cargo or passenger capacity. Ships are used on lakes, seas, and rivers for a variety of activities, such as the transport of people or goods, fishing,...

 and boats

Boat

A boat is a watercraft of any size designed to float or plane, to provide passage across water. Usually this water will be inland or in protected coastal areas. However, boats such as the whaleboat were designed to be operated from a ship in an offshore environment. In naval terms, a boat is a...

 into the mouth of the blind harbour. The wooden hand pointing from the Tower, guides the boats to their destination. It is crowned with the 19th century's mariners

Sailor

A sailor, mariner, or seaman is a person who navigates water-borne vessels or assists in their operation, maintenance, or service. The term can apply to professional mariners, military personnel, and recreational sailors as well as a plethora of other uses...

 beacon

Beacon

A beacon is an intentionally conspicuous device designed to attract attention to a specific location.Beacons can also be combined with semaphoric or other indicators to provide important information, such as the status of an airport, by the colour and rotational pattern of its airport beacon, or of...

 and a World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 look-out post. This is because the mouth of Dingle Harbour is a "blind" mouth, and this beacon told sailors

Sailors

Sailors is the plural form of Sailor, or mariner.Sailors may also refer to:*Sailors , a 1964 Swedish film*Ken Sailors , American basketball playerSports teams*Erie Sailors, baseball teams in Pennsylvania, USA...

 to let their sails

Sail

A sail is any type of surface intended to move a vessel, vehicle or rotor by being placed in a wind—in essence a propulsion wing. Sails are used in sailing.-History of sails:...

 down, enabling them to lose speed and to round the harbour mouth safely.

The Tower is of solid stone

Rock (geology)

In geology, rock or stone is a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids.The Earth's outer solid layer, the lithosphere, is made of rock. In general rocks are of three types, namely, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic...

. The building of it on Carhoo (Ceathru) hill, 600 feet above sea level, provided work during the Great Famine

Great Famine

Great Famine may refer to any of several historical famines:* The Great Famine of 1315–1317 in northern Europe* The Great India Famine of 1344-1345...

, at the instigation of Reverend Charles Gayer, Leader of the Protestants, in an attempt to win converts. Twenty-seven feet was its original height, but at the turn of the century, the old hand was removed and an extra thirteen feet of stone was added to its height. A new hand was placed, roughly at the beginning of the extension.

The panoramic views seen from Carhoo Hill include a large proportion of the Dingle Peninsula

Dingle Peninsula

The Dingle Peninsula is the northernmost of the major peninsulae in County Kerry. Its ends beyond the town of Dingle at Dunmore Head, the westernmost point of Ireland.-Name:...

 and beyond. For example, The Blasket Islands

Blasket Islands

The Blasket Islands are a group of islands off the west coast of Ireland, forming part of County Kerry. They were inhabited until 1953 by a completely Irish-speaking population. The inhabitants were evacuated to the mainland on 17 November 1953...

, Slea Head, Ventry

Ventry

Ceann Trá is a Gaeltacht village in County Kerry, Ireland. Located on the Dingle Peninsula, 7 kilometres west of Dingle, the village of Ventry was once the main port of the peninsula...

, Dingle Harbour, the Iveragh Peninsula

Iveragh Peninsula

The Iveragh Peninsula is located in County Kerry in Ireland. It is the largest peninsula in southwestern Ireland. A mountain range, the Macgillycuddy's Reeks, lies in the centre of the peninsula...

, Skellig Rocks, and Irelands two highest mountains - Carrauntoohill

Carrauntoohill

Carrauntoohil or Carrantuohill is the highest peak in Ireland. Located in County Kerry, it is tall and is the central peak of the Macgillycuddy's Reeks range. There are two other peaks in this range higher than 1,000 m—Beenkeragh and Caher...

 and Mount Brandon

Mount Brandon

Mount Brandon or Brandon Mountain is a 952 m mountain on the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, Republic of Ireland. It is the highest peak of the unnamed central mountain range of the Dingle Peninsula and the ninth highest peak in Ireland...

.