Burial in Tinderry

Situated on a natural rise in undulating terrain, in sandy soil. Field boundaries to the NW and SW have been removed and the road has been widened in front of a modern bungalow. The surface is gravelled over and it is probable that the site was filled in to provide stable, solid ground. The souterrain is either under this widened section of road or under the front lawn or gravelled driveway of the house. It was discovered in September 1964 and was surveyed by Etienne Rynne (Rynne 1965b, 188-90). It consists of a passage (L 1m; Wth c. 0.6m) abutting onto a slightly narrower passage or creep (L 2m; Wth 0.4m; H 0.58m) which leads to a small chamber (L 1.1m; Wth 1.1m). The walls are mainly orthostats combined with very little drystone-walling. The roof of the initial passage and the chamber were missing, however the creep had flat stone lintels. The souterrain is orientated N-S with the chamber terminating the N end. The original floor consisted of a darker, grittier material than the surrounding sandy soil, as if mixed with clay and small pebbles. Portion of the W wall of the chamber is missing but it appears to have been of roughly hexagonal plan. Manning suggested that due to the small size and unusual construction of the monument there is the possibility that it was a corn drying kiln rather than a souterrain (Stout 1984, 83). The above description is derived from 'The Archaeological Inventory of County Tipperary. Vol. 1 - North Tipperary' compiled by Jean Farrelly and Caimin O'Brien (Dublin: Stationery Office, 2002). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload/revision: 22 September 2008