Labbacallee wedge tomb
Coordinates: 52°10′11″N 8°20′13″W / 52.169838°N 8.336886°W
Labbacallee wedge tomb (Irish: Leaba Chaillí "Hag's Bed") is a large pre-historic burial monument, located 8km (5 miles) north-west of Fermoy and 2km (1.25 miles) south-east of Glanworth, County Cork, Ireland. It is the largest Irish wedge tomb.[1]
Contents |
[edit] Features
The site has three large capstones which slope downwards towards the back, the largest being 780cm long and weighing 10 tonnes. The gallery below is made up of a large rectangular chamber, with a small one behind it, divided by a slab. The gallery is triple-walled, buttressed at the back by three slabs set parallel to the axis of the tomb. To the front of the gallery are the remains of a large rectangular, unroofed, antechamber, which is wider than the gallery and separated from it by a large slab.[1] Outside this there was a further row of stones running off at an angle, but few of the original stones remain.[2]
[edit] Excavations
In 1934 excavations revealed a number of inhumations, fragments of a late Stone Age decorated pot, and fragments of bone and stone.[2] Local folklore associates the site with the Celtic Hag-Goddess Cailleach Bheur, and when during the excavations the site was found to contain the remains of a woman. Although the body had been positioned within the tomb, her skull was found outside of it.
[edit] References
- ^ a b Weir, A (1980). Early Ireland. A Field Guide. Belfast: Blackstaff Press. pp. p118.
- ^ a b "Labbacallee Wedge Tomb". Discover Ireland. http://www.discoverireland.ie/di/resultsengine/IndividualResultTCS.aspx?touristItemID=49741. Retrieved 2008-06-14.
[edit] Sources
- "Labbacallee". The Megalithic Portal. http://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=6333481. Retrieved 2008-06-14.
- Noonan, Damien (2001). "Castles & Ancient Monuments of Ireland", Arum Press. ISBN 1 8541 0752 6
