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4.50/5 (8 votes)
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I book a night nearby
Behind the little church in the village of Kilclooney stands a magnificent site, with 2 magnificent dolmens, the remains of an ancient cairn 25 metres in diameter, now destroyed. These 2 dolmens are among the most beautiful in Ireland, and attract the curiosity of tourists every year, intrigued by these megalithic formations. A must-see!
The 2 Kilclooney dolmens are located on private property. Its owner usually gives permission for visitors to explore the dolmen, but in Ireland it’s always a good idea to ask permission beforehand…
In any case, don’t panic: the owners never refuse a tourist a visit, and will even be happy to accompany you!
To reach the dolmens, you’ll have to follow a small path, and you’ll soon be able to make out the enormous silhouettes of 2 large, imposing dolmens. You’ll then be able to see that the 2 dolmens have a comparable structure, although one of the 2 is smaller and has been partially collapsed.
Situated less than 9 metres apart, the most interesting dolmen is the most imposing.
Its table (the megalith supported by the other stones) measures between 4 and 6 metres, almost equalling the measurements of Ireland’s largest dolmen, Brownshill dolmen in County Carlow.
This same table is supported by 1.8-metre-high vertical stone posts, which gives you an idea of the size of the dolmen’s chamber! According to archaeological research, this same chamber was also used as an altar for depositing the bones of the deceased.
As for the smallest dolmen, in less good condition, it has, like its neighbor, a massive table, also inclined at 15° degrees to the east, like most dolmens in Ireland. The latter has partially collapsed, leaving researchers and archaeologists little room for hypothesis.
However, archaeological excavations have revealed pottery dating from the Neolithic period, as well as other everyday objects from prehistoric times…
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