We are delighted to announce that our book ‘An Irish Civil War Dugout: Tormore Cave, County Sligo. Archaeology, History, Memory’ has won the Current Archaeology ‘Book of the Year 2026’ award held on Saturday 28 February 2026 at University College London Institute of Education.
The annual Current Archaeology Awards celebrate the projects, publications, and individuals who have made outstanding contributions to archaeology over the past year.
The ‘Book of the Year’ award has been running for 18 years, and this year there were 10 nominees. This is only the second time that an Irish book has won the award. We are immensely proud to see an Irish archaeological project recognised on such an international stage. This is also a first for our publishers, Archaeopress in Oxford.
We would like to sincerely thank everyone who voted for the book and supported the project: the families in Sligo and abroad that feature in the book, the support from our academic peers, and most especially, our families and friends who rallied behind us.
This is the third major award for ‘An Irish Civil War Dugout: Tormore Cave, County Sligo. Archaeology, History, Memory’, following on from the Sligo County Council Cathaoirleach’s Award for ‘Heritage and the Irish Language’ in December 2024 and the SUICRO Literary Award from the Speleological Union of Ireland (SUI) and the Irish Cave Rescue Organisation (ICRO), awarded in October 2024 for outstanding contributions to cave exploration and archaeology.
Marion, Robert & James
Caves Of Ireland 