Souterrain, Kilduff, Co. Kerry
Co. Kerry |
Settlement Sites
At the foot of Knocknakilton mountain on the Dingle Peninsula, a south-facing slope conceals an underground stone chamber that was already partly inaccessible when it was first properly recorded.
A porthole slab, less than half a metre high, opens onto a passage or further chamber that no one has been able to enter for decades. What lies beyond it remains unknown.
The chamber sits within a circular univallate rath, a type of enclosed farmstead common in early medieval Ireland, typically defined by a single earthen bank and ditch. The souterrain, an underground stone-lined passage or chamber that would have served as a storage space or refuge for the rath's inhabitants, is thought to be L-shaped in plan, though only one rectangular section can now be reached. That accessible chamber runs roughly west-north-west to east-north-east, measuring 4.6 metres in length, 1.45 metres wide, and less than a metre high. Its walls combine upright stone slabs at the base with drystone masonry above, and the upper courses are corbelled inward, narrowing the chamber to just over a metre at the level of the five roofing slabs. The only way in today is through a collapse in the south wall, an accident of deterioration rather than any original design. The porthole slab, recorded as having once been sealed by a closing stone as late as 1945, hints at how intact the structure remained within living memory. J. Cuppage documented the site in the 1986 Corca Dhuibhne archaeological survey of the Dingle Peninsula, which remains a foundational reference for the archaeology of this part of Kerry.
Anyone approaching the site should be aware that the sole means of entry is through the collapsed section of wall, a low and awkward aperture. The chamber beyond stands less than a metre tall throughout, so movement inside is limited to crawling. The porthole at the far end is visible but impassable, a small stone frame opening onto whatever part of the souterrain time has sealed off.