The word "fogou" comes from Cornish "fou" and "gou," both meaning "cave." Carn Euny fogou features a 20m corridor tall enough to walk through (1.8m), plus a round beehive hut chamber built with corbelled stones. Builders dug a trench, lined it with stone, and covered it with massive granite slabs. Both tunnel ends were originally sealed, with only a tiny crawl entrance at the south end. These underground structures share clear parallels with souterrains and earth-houses found across northern Europe and Scotland, including Orkney. The construction is remarkably sophisticated for Iron Age communities. 🪨
Carn Euny fogou: construction and physical features of Iron Age subterranean structure
EnglandArchitecture
Key facts
- The word 'fogou' derives from the Cornish words 'fou' and 'gou', both meaning 'cave'
- Carn Euny fogou consists of a 20m long corridor with a side passage leading to a round stone chamber known as the 'beehive hut'
- The corridor was 1.8m (6ft) in height, allowing people to stand while walking through it
- The beehive hut chamber measures 4.6m (15ft) in diameter and 2.4m (8ft) in height, constructed below ground level with stones arranged in a corbelled manner
- Construction involved digging a trench lined with stone and covered with large granite slabs
- Originally, both ends of the 20m tunnel were sealed, with the only entrance being a small creep passage at the southern end accessible only by crawling
- The beehive hut was built first, followed later by the long passage and creep passage, with the long tunnel later opened at each end
- Fogous share similarities with the souterrains or earth-houses of northern Europe and Scotland, including Orkney
Site mentioned
Sources
cornwallheritagetrust.org
Linked in video description
cornishancientsites.com
Linked in video description
Carn Eunyen.wikipedia.org
Carn Euny is best known for the well-preserved state of the large fogou, an underground passageway, which is more than 65 feet (20 metres) long. This fogou ...
Carn Euny Ancient Villageenglish-heritage.org.uk
At the heart of the village is its most intriguing feature – a stone-walled underground passage known as a fogou. This mysterious type of Iron Age monument ...
Iron Age to Roman settlement with incorporated fogou and ...historicengland.org.uk
Iron Age to Roman settlement with incorporated fogou and adjacent post-medieval cottage at Carn Euny. At least 12 fogous are known to have surviving remains,
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