Clochán

Beehive hut, also beehive hut, Eng. Beehive hat, ir Clochán ( plural Clocháin from Cloch "stone" ) is the name for Kraggewölbebauten of dry masonry.

Dissemination

British Isles

The cabins partially preserved today were singled still built in the Iron Age and into the early Christian period, in modern times. The largest concentration is found on the coast of the Dingle Peninsula. Particularly fine examples are in Fahan, near Ventry, and on the tiny rocky island of Skellig Michael (see picture ) west of the Iveragh Peninsula, both in County Kerry. On the Aran Islands of Clochán na Carraige is the last remaining beehive hut. In County Sligo Clocháin are on the island Innishmurray. On Slieve League ( "Grey Mountain "). On the west coast of County Donegal, one finds the northernmost beehive hut Ireland.

East of Lonfearn in Scotland are the so -called druids ' houses. Other interesting items are on the Isle of Skye and the small island in the archipelago of Eileach to Naoimh Garvellachs with a double cabin. In Cornwall Bosporthennis is another example on the other side of the Irish Sea. Here are a round and a rectangular hut.

France

Also, in many parts of South and South-West of France, there are stone huts made of dry stone masonry. The regional designations vary greatly: borie or cahute (Provence ), capitelle ( Roussillon ), cabane ( Périgord ), caselle ( Quercy ).

Type

The beehive huts are built in dry construction. They were without sealing and bonding material such as mortar in several parallel layers one upon another until they formed a corbelled. They are usually individually as parts of groups forming and occasionally double or multiple structures. In Ventry on the Dingle Peninsula in the early Middle Ages around 400 beehive huts were built in a confined space. A rare design variant is Clochán na Carraige on the Aran Island of Inishmore; they have two opposite inputs ( which act as a passage), is outside and inside oval rectangular.

Purpose

Some of the early copies, the best known are perhaps the Clocháin on Skellig Michael, were part of the early Christian monasteries. The system also needs to Eileach to Naoimh belonged to a monastery, which was probably founded by St. Brendan. Other specimens, including probably the at Ventry on the Dingle Peninsula, belonged to older complexes. Most of the huts are unused for a long time. Some were used until the 20th century as a warehouse and store rooms, or stables.