Megalithic tomb in An Cheapach

This monument, known locally as 'Uaigh an Fhada', is c. 800m N of the coastal cliff running W from Teelin Bay to Carrigan Head. It stands on boggy ground c. 10m S of the steep rocky face of a ridge of higher ground. The site looks S toward the coast, but elsewhere low hills restrict the outlook. A chamber measuring c. 3.5m long (NNE-SSW) and c. 2m wide survives here in a grass-grown mound, the original outline of which is unclear. The mound survives all around the chamber, except to the N; it now measures 11m N-S by 10.5m E-W and rises to a maximum height of 1m. A field wall crossing the site runs along the E side of the chamber and links two other walls that run approximately E-W along the northern and southern extremities of the mound. The chamber is open to the N, but it is not clear whether a gap here, 0.9m wide, represents an original entrance. The E side of the chamber, overlain by the later field wall, is slightly bellied in outline. The northernmost stone at this side is set transversely to the main axis of the chamber. This stone is l.1m high and, though now somewhat loose in the ground, appears to be in situ. The outer faces of the next three orthostats are concealed. Their heights from N to S are 0.2m, 0.35m and 0.45m. The last has a flat inner face and appears to have a sloping outer face. Beside it is a stone 0.5m high. The base of this stone is exposed at the S, where the ground dips, and it is not clear whether it is in situ. Three stones remain of the western side of the chamber. The northernmost one, slightly skewed, is 0.85m high. Approximately 0.15m W of and parallel to this is a low stone, possibly detached from it. This is 0.45m high. Beyond this, at the edge of the mound, are two partly concealed slabs rising 0.2m above ground level. These do not seem to be structural stones. The second orthostat on this side is 0.55m high. The third orthostat, set inside the line of the second, is 0.5m high. A small slab, its outer end concealed by the mound, rests on the N end of this in the manner of a corbel. It measures 0.6m by at least 0.3m and is 0.15-0.2m thick. Two set stones next to each other mark the S end of the chamber. The eastern one is a tall flat-topped slab, 0.9m high. The western one, c. 0.6m high, is slightly gabled in outline. The letters 'TC' have been set in relief using concrete on the top of this stone. At its W end is a partly buried stone, at least 0.5m in maximum dimension, which may be detached from it. It is not clear whether the two set stones at this end represent the original back of the structure. Just over 3m NE of the front of the chamber a firmly set stone rises 0.15m above the surface of the mound. Its status is uncertain. This monument has been listed as a court tomb (Ó Nualláin 1983a), but it became clear after clearance and planning that this classification could not be confirmed. Nevertheless, certain features find their closest parallels in court tombs. The two stones at either side of the gap at the N end may be entrance jambs or segmenting jambs of a court tomb gallery. The outline of the E side, though not mirrored at the W side, recalls the bellied shape of some court tomb chambers, and the two stones at the S end of the structure may represent a jamb and sill arrangement. Although there can be little doubt that this is a megalithic tomb, it must remain unclassified. Ó Nualláin 1983a, 18, no. 9; SMR 1987, 96:14; Ó Nualláin 1989, 142; RMP 1995, 96:14. The above description was published in the 'Survey of the Megalithic Tombs of Ireland. Volume VI, County Donegal.' Compiled by: Eamon Cody (Dublin: Stationery Office, 2002). Date of upload: 22 September 2008 See linked document with details from Eamon Cody, Survey of the Megalithic Tombs of Ireland. Volume VI. County Donegal. (Dublin: Stationery Office, 2002)