Souterrain, Ráth Ciaráin, Co. Kerry

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Settlement Sites

Souterrain, Ráth Ciaráin, Co. Kerry

On the Ordnance Survey maps, it appears simply as 'Cave', a label that tells you almost nothing about what it actually is.

The feature in question is a souterrain, an underground stone-lined passage or chamber built during the early medieval period, typically used for storage, refuge, or both. This one sits in pasture on the Iveragh Peninsula in County Kerry, on ground that slopes down to the north-west towards the Ballynahow river, and it is currently inaccessible.

The site lies near Ráth Ciaráin, a placename that suggests the presence of a ráth, a circular earthen ringfort, in the area. Souterrains are frequently found in association with ringforts across Ireland, constructed beneath or beside the enclosure to provide a cool underground space for dairy produce, or a place of concealment during raids. The entrance to this particular example measures one metre by one metre, and a number of large stones are scattered in the ground nearby, likely displaced from the original structure over the centuries. The survey of the Iveragh Peninsula compiled by A. O'Sullivan and J. Sheehan, published by Cork University Press in 1996, recorded the site as part of a broader effort to document the dense and varied archaeology of South Kerry.

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