Largantea Wedge Tomb

Map Reference: C726269 (2726, 4269)



View from the SW showing the three stones which form the double portal

This monument is known as the Well Glass Spring Cairn and it stands close to the west side of the spring. According to the Preliminary Survey of Ancient Monuments in Northern Ireland the cairn measures 30ft (9.14m) from east the west and 24ft (7.31m) from north to south. The facade with its double portal was at the west end and the burial gallery was divided into two chambers. According to the Northern Ireland Sites and Monuments Record the entrance is on the south-west. A large capstone measuring 1.5m by 1.4m covers the NE end of the gallery. Excavation in 1936 found three chambers. The first contained sherds of Beaker pottery and a flint scraper; the second had more pottery and the remains of six adults, a child of c.12 and an infant; the third chamber had some pottery sherds, charcoal and some bones. The most usual arrangement in a wedge tomb is one large burial chamber and a small ante-chamber. When I visited the site in 1984 I found that it was somewhat overgrown. I did not see any internal divisions in the gallery. I made an attempt to visit again in 2009 but found that the site is now fenced off and guarded by the ‘Danger! Do Not Enter!’ type of notice. The photographs on this page were taken in 1984 and I would be grateful if anybody could provide fresh and clearer images of this monument.



View from SE showing some of the sidestones and the remaining capstone



A closer view of the capstone