HISTORY
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Labbacallee Wedge Tomb
Labbacallee was excavated by Harold Leask and Liam Price in 1934. They found that the burial chamber was divided into two parts, a long gallery and a small box like feature at the eastern end. This eastern feature contained cremated remains, and an unburned but headless skeleton of an adult female. The skull was found in the gallery next to the skeletons of an adult male and child. The remains of these three individuals were radiocarbon dated, the results revealed that they appeared to have been interred separately between 2456–1776 BC.
Labbacallee was excavated in 1934-35 at which time the tomb was virtually intact with the major exception being the western end, closest to the road where disturbance has made it difficult to determine the exact design. Evidence of a possible kist containing human bones and fragments of a food vessel were found in this area of the tomb. The upper layer of the main chamber contained a bone point, spindle whorl and fragments of a human skull along with the expected field trash. Beneath this, charcoal-blackened earth yielded numerous animal bones and a few fragments of human bone in the western section. In the eastern side of the main chamber, fragments of the skeletons of an adult male and a child were found, along with the skull of a human female. These remains were found with part of a decorated Beaker pot and numerous pieces of coarser Knockadoon type pottery. A headless female skeleton was found along with a bone pin in the bottom of the smaller eastern chamber. The conclusion at the time was that the skull from the eastern part of the main chamber most likely belonged to this skeleton. The fill above this burial contained more animal bones, some fragments of cremated human bones and more sherds of coarse pottery. Radiocarbon dating places the burials in a timeframe between 2202 BC and 2138 BC.
The skull of a witch? When discovered, in a different burial chamber than the rest of her skeleton, the woman’s lower jaw was missing from her skull. (Leask, 1936)
Information below available on www.archaeology.ie
For the searchable database see http://webgis.archaeology.ie/NationalMonuments/FlexViewer/
SMR number: CO027-086----
In pasture, on top of low gently sloping knoll c. 450m S of Funshion River. One of the largest wedge tombs in the country, it was excavated in 1934 (Leask and Price 1936). Remains comprise long, subrectangular gallery, aligned WNW-ESE, divided into W main chamber (L 6.2m, Wth c. 1.7m) and small E end chamber (L c. 0.9m; Wth 1.2m); the whole is covered by three roofstones. Main chamber is 1.8m H at W and 1.2m at E end. Gallery walls are doubled and flanked on either side by massive outer-walling. Three buttress stones stand at E end of gallery. Line of low kerbstones to S of gallery, joining buttress stones at E end, encloses low remains of cairn; some remains of cairn found to N of gallery but no kerb located. West end of monument is very ruined and though original design is unclear, probable portico seems likely. On floor of end chamber were found headless skeleton of woman accompanied by burnt animal bones and bone pin; probable primary burial. Higher up were cremated human bones and some coarse pot sherds. Two inhumations, including three skulls, were found in main chamber with sherds of coarse pottery. Additional skull appeared to match female skeleton from end chamber. Evidence for other burials were found in portico area including probable cist containing inhumation and sherds of possible food vessel (11956). Three radiocarbon determinations indicate that burials could have taken place within shortest calibrated range of 2202-2138 BC (Brindley and Lanting 1991-92, 21). (de Valera and Ó Nualláin 1982, 2-4, no. 3; Ó Riordáin and Waddell 1993, 94)
See linked document with details from Ruaidhrí de Valera and Seán Ó Nualláin, Survey of the Megalithic Tombs of Ireland. Volume IV. Counties Cork, Kerry, Limerick, Tipperary. (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1982)