A souterrain is an underground stone-lined passage or chamber, typically constructed during the early Christian period, roughly between the seventh and twelfth centuries. They are found in their hundreds across Ireland, often associated with ringforts, and their exact purposes remain a matter of some debate among archaeologists. Likely uses include food storage, taking advantage of the constant cool temperature underground, and refuge during periods of raid or conflict.

The Dromultan example sits within a part of Kerry that would have been well settled in the early medieval period, a landscape of small farming communities organised around defended enclosures and subject to the rhythms of cattle farming and seasonal raiding that characterised the era. The specific details of this particular souterrain, its dimensions, its construction style, whether it survives intact or has partially collapsed, remain to be fully documented in the public record. What is known is that it has been identified and recorded as a monument, placing it within a long tradition of underground architecture that represents one of the more tangible connections between the modern Irish landscape and its early medieval inhabitants.