This type of burial, documented by Seán P. Ó Ríordáin in 1935, represents a common Bronze Age practice across Ireland, where the dead were cremated and their ashes placed in stone boxes with grave goods for the afterlife.

The discovery becomes more intriguing with reports of a second cist found approximately 20 metres away, though details of this second burial remain sparse in the National Museum of Ireland's records. Such paired or grouped cists often indicate a burial ground used by a community over generations, rather than an isolated interment. The presence of the food vessel, a characteristic Bronze Age pottery form, suggests these burials date to somewhere between 2500 and 500 BCE, when such ceramic offerings were standard practice in Irish funeral rites.

These cists form part of Donegal's rich archaeological landscape, documented comprehensively in the Archaeological Survey of County Donegal compiled by Brian Lacey and his team in 1983. The survey catalogued field antiquities spanning from the Mesolithic period through to the 17th century, preserving crucial information about sites that might otherwise be forgotten or destroyed. The Bellanascaddan cists, though simple in appearance, offer a tangible connection to Bronze Age communities who once inhabited this corner of northwest Ireland, carefully preparing their dead for the journey beyond with pottery vessels that may have contained food, drink, or other provisions for the afterlife.