What is recorded here

Seven metres of narrow stone led from the chief dwelling under the inner wall to a cliff crevice, offering escape when the fort above failed. Ash and bones coated the bottom, hinting that desperation once drove someone through darkness rather than surrender. The passage remains a stark reminder that even the strongest local defence relied on a hidden route to survival.

Situated in the N portion of Cahercommaun (CL010-064003-). This Man-made underground passage (L 7m; Wth 0.67-1.1m) led from what Hencken (1938, 2) called the dwelling of the ‘chief occupant’ (CL010-064090-) under the inner wall of the fort to the edge of the ravine where a vertical crevice in the face of the cliff offered a means of escape in an emergency. A layer of mostly ash mixed with bones (D 0.35m) was found on bedrock at the bottom of the Man-made underground passage. Cahercommaun is a national monument in State care. (Hencken 1938, 1-81; Cotter 1999, 41-95) Compiled by: Mary Tunney Date of upload: 4 October 2016

The monument record does not grant public access. Check the route and ask the landowner before entering private land.