Man-made underground passage in Castleventry

In a farmyard, c. 100m N of a rath (CO134-026----). A collapse of soil in 1991 resulted in an opening (1.6m N-S; 1.2m E-W) in the ground which gave access to a subrectangular earth-cut chamber (3.7m N-S; 1.4m E-W; min H 1m) with a rounded roof. The opening was in the N end of the roof of the chamber. The S end of the chamber narrows to c. 1m and turns slightly to the SW where there is a blocked-up construction shaft (Wth c. 0.7m; H c. 0.9m). At the base of the construction shaft it was clear that the floor of the chamber was cut into the underlying bedrock. An opening (Wth 0.5m; H 0.4m) in the W side of the chamber appears to extend in a W direction but due to collapse and infilling it was difficult to determine its function. It may have been a creepway or an air-vent. According to local information, another collapse of soil had occurred some years previously but it was backfilled immediately. This is now evident as an area of disturbed ground (c. 5m x 4m) 2.5m SW of the more recent collapse. At that time a large subcircular earth-cut chamber from which two 'tunnels' extended, one to the SW and the other to the SE, was visible. What is likely to have been another blocked-up construction shaft and two air-vents were also described. The above description is derived from 'The Archaeological Inventory of County Cork. Volume 5' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 2009). Date of upload: 22 December 2009