Man-made underground passage in Bengour West

Cleary (1989, 26) describes five earth-cut chambers, discovered 1983; all chambers rectangular or subrectangular in plan. Present access through chamber 1. Built-up construction shafts at N end of chamber 3 and E end of chamber 4; virtually collapsed E end of chamber 1 is possible construction shaft. Chamber 1: 3.35m E-W; 1.5m N-S; H 0.9m. Chamber 2: 2.1m N-S; 1.1m E-W; H 1m. Chamber 3: 2.9m N-S; 1.3m E-W; H 0.9m. Chamber 4: 3.1m E-W; 1.3m NE-SW; H 1.1m. Chamber 5: 2.2m NW-SE; 1.25m SW-NE; H 0.95m. Proximity to spring causes waterlogging in chambers 1-3 and Cleary notes that function as storage area is therefore unlikely. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Cork. Volume 1: West Cork' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1992). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload/revision: 14 January 2009