Cave, Crumlin

In the NW sector of a very poorly preserved cashel (CL004-032003-) which lies immediately NE of ‘Crumlin Fort’ (CL004-032001-). Named ‘Cave’ on the Cassini edition (1915) of the OS 6-inch map. A rectangular hollow - the remains of a robbed-out but formerly roofed passage or chamber - runs from SW to NE where it ends beside a second, roofed chamber which dog-legs to run SE and joins another, roofed chamber; the whole having a roughly L–shaped plan. The hollow (L 4.5m SW-NE; D 0.9-1.8m; Wth c. 1.3m), contains drystone side-walling at its NE end in which a small, square opening (Wth 0.2m; H 0.2m; traceable L c. 1.5m) may be an air-vent. From the NE end of the hollow, a roofed chamber runs SE, at right angles, (L 4.7m NW-SE; Wth 1.25-1.5m; H 1-1.7) and is constructed of drystone side walls which corbel gently inwards from floor level to support a roof of large lintel stones which are subsiding at the centre of the chamber. The height of the chamber increases from its NW end towards the centre. At its SE end, the floor level is raised to form a rectangular platform (H 1m; Wth 1.4m) which contains in its floor a partially blocked opening; a creep (L c. 0.9m; Wth 0.7m; D c. 0.35m) which originally gave defensible access to a second roofed chamber to the SE. This chamber (L 6m NW-SE; H 0.8-1.3m; Wth 1.1-1.35m) is accessible from an opening at its SE-end and is roofed by five large stone lintels and contains a lot of loose stone on its floor. See attached: CL004-032002-_1 View of nettle-filled hollow, to left, with opening into roofed chamber at centre. CL004-032002-_2 Interior of chamber with raised platform containing the creep, behind ranging rod. Compiled by: Gearóid Conroy and Lynda McCormack Date of upload: 26 October 2022