Court Tomb by Shalwy
The court tomb of Shalwy ( Irish Na Sealbha ; also called Muinner Carn ) is located on swampy terrain about 3.0 km east of Kilcar ( Irish Cill Charthaigh ) and 6 km west of Killybegs ( Irish Na Cealla Beaga ) in County Donegal in Ireland . Shalwy was excavated between 1967 and 1970. There are two other court tombs in this area, Croaghbeg and Bavan . Court Tombs are among the megalithic chamber tombs ( English chambered tombs ) of the British Isles . With around 400 specimens, they are found almost exclusively in Ulster in the north of Ireland or in Northern Ireland .
The approximately 37 m long cairn is double trapezoid and has a maximum width of 14.5 m in the middle. In the area of the exedra it is about 10 m wide and the rear end is about 7 m wide. The preserved height of the cairn is about 2.0 m, but it was originally higher. The sides of the cairn were held up by dry stone masonry , which in some places has been preserved up to 0.9 m high. The entrance in the middle of the facade led, similar to Creevykeel , to the courtyard with its concave exedra.
The front area of the cairn with the facade and part of the courtyard was destroyed, so that the original shape of this section was derived from the excavation. Access through the facade was about 5 meters long and leads into a pear-shaped about 8.5 m and m long at the point breitesten 7.8 wide courtyard ( English court ). It was formed by large orthostats , most of which are missing. Rows of 10 stones north and eight stones south of the gallery are in situ . The excavation of the courtyard revealed several pieces of flint including a leaf-shaped arrowhead . A conch shell was found under the end stone of the gallery.
The gallery was filled with stones up to the top of the side panels. The approximately 6 m long gallery consists of three plates on each side and the end stone. A pair of posts in the middle of the gallery structures the space, which is repeated in the Croaghbeg court tomb. The gallery is accessed between two flat posts about 1.5 m high, which leave an opening of 0.85 m. The posts are spanned by a massive double lintel. The lower element is 3.1 m long, 1.35 m wide and 0.65 m thick. The upper one is 2.8 m long, 1.5 m wide and 0.7 m thick, its top has a gable profile. A large rectangular panel at the front of the gallery, believed to be the locking panel, was broken and removed during the excavation.
The front chamber of the gallery is 3 m long and at its widest point, just behind the entrance, is 3.4 m wide. It tapers towards the rear chamber. The segmentation posts are 0.6 m apart. They are 1.45 m and 1.6 m high. A large plate in the front chamber was probably the lintel over the post. The 2.2 m long, 0.95 m wide and 0.95 m thick stone is now in the courtyard outside the gallery.
See also
literature
- Peter Harbison : Pre-christian Ireland - From the first Settlers to the early Celts . London 1988 ISBN 0-500-27809-1
Web links
Coordinates: 54 ° 37 ′ 29 ″ N , 8 ° 32 ′ 44 ″ W.