Souterrain

The National Monuments Service's description

Situated in a level landscape S of Killegland church (ME045-004----). Archaeological testing (05E1321) by S. Halliday of Site I in advance of a housing development identified numerous archaeological features (exscavations.ie 2006:1496). The area was further investigated (06E0871) by J. Kavanagh (excavations.ie 2006:1499) who sampled some of the features. This souterrain was located c. 25m S of the graveyard. A rectangular entrance chamber (dims 4.2m x 3.4m) consisting of only the basal courses (max. H 0.4m) has a cross-wall (L 2.2m) with an opening on the N side. This chamber was probably always visible on the surface. It led to the slightly curving passage (L 17.4m) extending ESE, of which only the basal courses (H 0.3-0.9m) survived, but it had a metaled floor surface where it ran over a silted ditch. The passage was roughly parallel with the S ditch of the ecclesiastical enclosure (ME045-004004-), and at the E end was a circular beehive chamber (int. diam. 3.2m) with drystone walls (max. H 1.7m). No artefacts were recovered from the souterrain, but It is now preserved in the fallow area (radius c. 30m) around the graveyard. (Halliday 2007, 18-19)

Compiled by: Michael Moore

Date of upload: 22 December 2021

References

Halliday, S. 2007 Archaeological Monitoring Report. Proposed Residential Development, Killegland, Ashbourne, Co. Meath. Licence: 05E1321. Unpublished report, Arch-Tech