'...Where Uladh’s sons were wont to hold
The patron dance and feis of old;
And stately woods then unreclaimed
Where farmers now the harvest reap
And cairn and cave and headland steep,
Bold Boirche’s peaks in tale renowned. '
Extract from: 'Rathfriland Castle' by Hugh Digenan
The above extract comes from a wonderful poem written by the early C20th historian Hugh Digenan, of Mayobridge. His extensive knowledge of local history combined with an understanding of the Irish language makes him an important figure for those of us who care about the heritage of South Down.
In his poem 'Rathfriland Castle' written in 1906, Mr Digenan paints a vivid picture of the last days of the Magennis Chieftains of Iveagh. In it he includes descriptions, not only of the castle itself, but of the lands surrounding it which were long held by the Magennis clan. This includes a mention of a 'cairn and cave'.
The description of Knock Iveagh Cairn as a 'cave' has long confused me. As you can see from the above images (2nd & 3rd Ordnance Survey maps) a 'cave' is marked alongside the cairn. As someone who has visited Knock Iveagh summit Cairn since childhood, I can tell you that no trace of a 'cave' remains here - and believe me I've looked! So what does this reference mean?
The term 'cave' in ordnance survey maps can have a variety of meanings all of which have something to do with 'holes in the ground'. The word cave can of course simply mean a cave in the traditional sense, ie. a natural void in the rock caused by erosion (often by water); however it can also mean a souterrain - an ancient man-made subterranean structure designed for defensive purposes or for storage (or for both), as at the nearby Finnis souterrain.
It seems to me incredibly unlikely that a natural cave would be found here given the geology. It also seems an unlikely place to build a souterrain given its exposed hilltop location, although rumours of souterrains and tunnels do exist elsewhere in the area.
One persistent piece of folklore claims that a 'tunnel' runs between Knock Iveagh and the Magennis Castle in Rathfriland. A connection between the two places is beyond doubt - the Magennis Lords and their predecessors were inaugurated at Knock Iveagh and lived in Rathfriland - but logic says an ancient tunnel 4.5km long is absolute fantasy! Perhaps the connection is more metaphysical than real.
So what does the inscription 'cave' mean, and what exactly was Hugh Digenan referring to in his poem, written around the time of the 3rd OS? Could the term 'cave' have been used to describe a different kind of passage - perhaps a passage tomb? I decided to have a look at the most well-known passage tomb in the area, the 'Cailleach Beara's House' at Slieve Gullion, to see if it was also described as a 'cave' - and so it was. Here are the 1st and 3rd OS Maps respectively:
And here's what the early OS maps show for Loughcrew, County Meath - with its famous cairns. Note how the passage cairn known as Carn Bán or 'The Hags Cairn' (aka 'Cairn T'), is also described as a cave.
And not forgetting the 'caves' marked at Newgrange and Dowth.
There is an important difference between the labelling of the 'cave' at Knock Iveagh and the caves marked at Gullion, Loughcrew, and elsewhere though, and it's this - the OS map for Knock Iveagh changes between the 2nd and 3rd Ordnance Surveys. The 2nd OS map (first pic on this page, circa 1860) is clearly marked with 'cave' - indicating that the passage must still have been largely intact when the map was drawn. However, by the time of the 3rd OS (2nd pic above, approx. 40 years later) the OS now states: 'site of cave', rather than 'cave'. This suggests that the cave at Knock Iveagh was no longer apparent but was still remembered at the time the 3rd OS map was created*. Mr Digenan's poem includes the reference to a 'cave' despite being written in 1906. Perhaps the diligent historian was trying to ensure the 'cave' part was not forgotten!
In January 2018, Historic Environment Division, DFC, stated the following:
There are other similarities with passage cairns too. For example, as archaeologist Pat Collins explains in this 1960s article on Knockmany, that the mound at Knock Iveagh would have been deliberately covered in earth in common with other important passage tombs:
So what might have happened to the cave/passage at Knock Iveagh? Eamonn Kelly makes the following suggestion in this article.
Newspaper reports around the time of Pat Collins' trial excavation in 1954 also suggest that the cairn had been looted 'a century or more ago'**.
It seems very likely that Issac Glenny (J.P.) was the culprit. He lived not far away just outside Newry, and was well known at the time for 'collecting' antiquities. An article in the Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquities of Ireland which discusses the 'Glenny Collection' states that 'most of the antiquities were found by Mr. Glenny himself, but many of the antiquities could not be identified with the localities from which they were taken. That was a defect that was and is too common among collectors'.
Whatever happened, it seems that the 'cave' remembered by locals had sadly been damaged by the end of the C19th with much of its contents dispersed without trace.
Nonetheless, during Collins' *partial* excavation of 1954, numerous other artefacts were discovered, including the bones of an adult and a child, flint arrowheads, pottery, pieces of quartz crystal, and part of a polished stone axe-head.
Hilltop passage cairns are often associated with the 'Cailleach' including the ones at Slieve Gullion, and Loughcrew (there are others!). The Cailleach is a kind of 'Divine Hag', who is often described as taking on the appearance of an old woman, or sometimes that of a young and beautiful girl. Often she switches between the two... She has associations with the ancestors and the land itself & is sometimes referred to as a 'witch' or a 'banshee'. Many Cailleach myths persist throughout Ireland, and Knock Iveagh has a few of its own with 'sightings' of the mythical figure even reported up to the present day.
One story in Annaclone Historical Society's book 'Irish Ghost Stories & Mysteries from County Down', associates Hugh Magennis (there were several Lords of Iveagh with this name) with the Cailleach and it is said to have been passed down through the Magennis family. In the story, young Hugh is out for a walk with a beautiful young girl in the lands around Knock Iveagh. Perhaps in flirtatious form, the young woman hides from Hugh inside a cave only to discover herself face to face with a witch! The witch places a spell on the young woman, stating that if she ever leaves the cave she will immediately become an ugly old hag who no man would ever want! This story is interesting because it features both a young woman and an old woman inside the 'cave' - perhaps representing the maiden and the crone.
The existence of such a mythical figure at Knock Iveagh would have been hugely significant in a culture where rulers were ritually wedded to the 'sovereignty goddess' as part of their inauguration ceremony. Perhaps the story of the Witch in the cave was indeed part of a tradition passed down through the Magennis family - one designed to reinforce their legitimacy.
Another piece of folklore in the area describes how, not very long ago, several women had an encounter with a 'wee woman' (described by some as a 'fairy woman') who scared a horse and its rider before disappearing into a hedge along the Iveagh Road at Knock Iveagh.
Other accounts of encounters with a mythical female figure often described simply as 'herself' do exist in the area, but in this age of reason and science people are understandably reluctant to discuss them openly!
Given the available evidence, it seems to me reasonable to discuss the possibility that Knock Iveagh Cairn is more that 'just' a cairn and perhaps represents the remains of a lost and much-neglected passage tomb. One which has never been properly excavated or protected, and one which exists above a layer of burnt remains hinting at even more ancient associations. The only way to gather more information about the cairn's original function would be to excavate it. I have mixed feelings about that.
Nonetheless, it is already clear that this is a significant site which has been neglected for decades and IMO it merits further study; not only because of its key role in the life of the community here for thousands of years, but also because of how it relates to other monuments in the area. Without proper protection and investigation, what else might be lost? It all makes a 2017 comment by a member of Historic Environment Division (DFC) that the monument at Knock Iveagh was not worthy of 'State Care' because it was vandalised in the C19th, even more worrying! We should all be very concerned if damage to our ancient monuments is used as an excuse for further neglect, particularly by the body responsible for protecting them!
To quote the Historic Monuments and Archaeological Objects Order 1995: 'The Department may, by agreement or compulsorily, acquire any historic monument for the purpose of securing its protection'. Given the further threats to this important site in recent years, it seems to me Knock Iveagh deserves nothing less.
*no marking relating to a cairn or cave is visible on the 1st OS map
** Belfast Telegraph, September 7th 1954