Caves of Kesh
limestone caves in County Sligo, Ireland
The Caves of Kesh, also known as the Keash Caves or the Caves of Keshcorran (Irish: Uaimheanna na Céise), are a series of limestone caves located near the village of Keash, County Sligo, Ireland. The caves are situated on the west side of Keshcorran Hill (part of the Bricklieve Mountains) and consist of sixteen simple chambers, some interconnecting.
The caves have been used by man over several millennia, and it has long been suggested that they were the site of ancient religious practice or gathering such as Lughnasadh.
Excavations carried out in the early 20th century, particularly those by Robert Francis Scharff, discovered significant animal remains. Among others, these included bones of brown bear, arctic lemming, Irish elk, and grey wolf.
Geology
The sixteen interconnecting caves of white cherty limestone are found at the base of a line of low cliffs, on the western slope of the hill. They were formed from the atmospheric weathering of carboniferous limestone, and run perpendicular to the rock face. Quartz crystals are abundant, and glacial boulder-beds can be found at the mouth of some of the caves, showing that Keshcorran was at one time buried beneath an ice sheet. The caves bear evidence of being washed out by water, and a layer of breccia containing limestone blocks can be found in many of them. Stalagmite floors are rare, and when present appear to have been burrowed into by foxes and badgers.
“Caves of Kesh” enters the record as limestone caves in County Sligo, Ireland. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Caves, Kesh and limestone can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Caves of Kesh” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Caves, Kesh and limestone provides the most credible route into that argument.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 10, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q42852369. Authority coordinates are 54.058, -8.450. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank.
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This entry incorporates text from “Caves of Kesh” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.