Fians, Fairies and Picts by David MacRitchie
page 41 of 72 (56%)
page 41 of 72 (56%)
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At the bottom, on the right-hand side, was the usual guard-cell (_b_);
the sides of dry-stone masonry, but the end was the face of a rock _in situ_. Proceeding on, the roof rose and the gallery widened to what was the main chamber (_c_), which was 7 feet high under the apex of the dome, and 4 feet broad. Upon the west side of this chamber, and about 2 feet from the ground, is a recess, about 2 feet square and 4 feet long. At the further end, and in the same right line, the gallery (_d_) became low (2½ feet) and narrow (2 feet). Again the roof rose, and the gallery widened till stopt, in face, by a large transported rock (_f_); to the right of the rock a rectangular chamber (_e_), 2 feet broad, extended 4 feet, and ended against rock _in situ_. Round, and beyond the rock (_f_), the wall of the left side of the gallery was built, but the passage was so narrow (_g_) that I contented myself by looking through it. This incomprehensible narrowness is a feature in the buildings of this period. Some of Captain Otter's officers pushed through into the small chamber (_h_); beyond this the gallery was ruinated and impassable; the total length explored was 45 feet."[71] [Footnote 71: _Proc. Soc. Antiq. Scot._, vol. vii. (First Series), pp. 167-8.] [Illustration: PLATE II. FIG. 8. "It is of a bee-hive form, about 18 feet in diameter, 9 feet high, and covered with green turf outside." |
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