Cahernagat

Internal diam. c. 21m NW-SE, 19m NE-SW Cahernagat/Cathair na gCat: This poorly preserved caher is located on the lower E slopes of Drung Hill in land devoted to pasture. It consists of a severely modified and largely denuded stone bank and an external fosse, which enclose a roughly circular area. Modern field walls overlie the bank and the entire site is densely overgrown. The fosse averages 4m wide. Stone was removed from the site for use in the construction of nearby roads in the 1930s and '40s (local information). A stone-built Man-made underground passage (KE063-019001-) featuring three chambers, was discovered in the caher's interior by County Council workers in 1944. Each of the chambers was described as measuring 10 feet (3.05m) long, 4 feet 6 inches (1.37m) wide, and 5 feet (1.52m) high (Irish Press, 8/4/44). A low-creepway joining two of the chambers appears to have been fitted with an arch stone or porthole slab (Cork Examiner, 7/4/44). No apparent surface trace remains of the Man-made underground passage. The above description is derived from A. O'Sullivan and J. Sheehan (compilers), 'The Iveragh peninsula: an archaeological survey of South Kerry'. Cork University Press (1996), no. 570. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload: 29 July 2013