Man-made underground passage in Knowth

Nine Man-made underground passages have been recorded in excavation at the passage tomb complex. They are associated with the early medieval open settlement (ME019-030060-) and are placed largely on the sides and summit of the great mound. This is Man-made underground passage No. 8 set into the base of the mound at NW. It consists of a straight passage (L 3.2m; Wth 0.7m; H 0.6) leading to a beehive chamber (dims 2m x 1.7m; H 1.5m) closed with a single capstone. The entrance was from an unroofed shallow pit outside kerbstone 89 of Tomb 1C, ran beneath that stone, and along the passage which was built in the fill of the lower fosse of the rath. The passage and chamber had a fill (T 0.3-0.4m) of silt from which no artefacts were recovered. This Man-made underground passage is conserved and its entrance beneath the kerbstone can be seen, but it is inaccessible. (Eogan 2012, 101) Compiled by: Michael Moore Date of upload: 06 November 2013 Amended: 17 September 2020 See the attached illustrations: _1 Early medieval features, from Knowth 5, Fig. 4:1 _2 Man-made underground passage plan, from Knowth 5, Fig. 4: 11