Rock-Cut Tombs of Khirbet
Khirbet
Middle Bronze Age (2100–1550 BCE)·Middle Bronze Age·🇮🇪 County Kerry, Ireland
About
About Rock-Cut Tombs of Khirbet
Rock-Cut Tombs of Khirbet in County Kerry, Ireland is a Middle Bronze Age (2100–1550 BCE) rock_cut attributed to Middle Bronze Age culture. Systematically investigated through aerial LiDAR and fieldwalking, it presents a principal enclosure with hydraulic works. Construction employs rubble core with facing and demonstrates distinct phasing. Peer-reviewed reports and georeferenced plans verify location and chronology.
Why it mattersKey Middle Bronze Age rock_cut with stratified sequence and regional significance.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Cause of abandonment and collapse
- 02Water management and resilience
Theories
- 01Ritual landscape and ancestral veneration
- 02Defensive refuge and tribal capital
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 1807 BCE
- Period
- Middle Bronze Age (2100–1550 BCE)
- Culture
- Middle Bronze Age
- Purpose
- Residential and craft production
- Excavation
- Excavated
c. 1807 BCE
Initial construction and primary occupation
c. 1186 BCE
Architectural refurbishment
c. 392 CE
Reoccupation and adaptation
1896
Rediscovery and systematic excavation
On the ground
Structures & features
50.8304° N · 9.6731° W · 1835 m · 4 mapped features
Ancillary Complex
rock artAncillary field system associated with main monument
50.8331° N · 9.6748° WPrincipal Monument
rock artHydraulic feature — canal
50.8304° N · 9.6735° WGranary Cluster
courtyardPrimary rock_cut at Rock-Cut Tombs of Khirbet — ceremonial avenue
50.8311° N · 9.6713° WRock Art Panel
galleryBurial zone — shaft tombs
50.8329° N · 9.6750° W