Prehistoric Dwelling Places 81 



This meagre description conveys little beyond the fact 

 that the cave seems to be almost exactly similar to that in 

 Ballymartin, a neighbouring townland, like Templepatrick, full 

 of associations with a long forgotten race and history. The 

 name Ballymartin is evidently a modern one. Dr. Eeeves 

 supposes the old church known by this name to correspond with 

 that mentioned in the Taxation Roll of Pope Nicholas, under the 

 name of "Ecclesia de Veteri Villa," or Oldtown. The name 

 Ballymartin was in existence as early as IGOO, but local tradition, 

 referred to in the Ordnance Survey Letters and still prevalent in 

 the district, gives the ancient name of McGarrystown to the 

 place. The site of the ancient village of McGarrystown is inter- 

 sected by the modern road from Belfast to Antrim, in the making 

 of which many very interesting bronze and other remains were 

 found. It is, however, beyond the scope of this paper to give in 

 detail any description of the many antiquities of this interesting 

 place, its ancient church and churchyard, its holy well, the rath, 

 or the remains of the village of McGarrystown. I only intend to 

 refer in detail to the rock-cut Souterrain, the very oldest, and 

 curious to say the best preserved and most enduring memorial 

 of prehistoric times now visible in this locality. The site 

 of the ancient church and churchyard are on the north side 

 of the stream known as the Ballymartin river, which flows 

 through the townland. On the south side, exactly opposite the 

 ancient and long disused churchyard, is the mouth of the souter- 

 rain. It is cut into the face of an almost perpendicular basalt 

 cliff about 23 feet high, which forms the left or south bank of 

 the stream. The mouth of the souterrain is 7^ feet above the 

 bed of the river ; it is 2| feet high by 4 feet wide ; above the 

 mouth of the cave the cliff ascends about 13 feet. Entering the 

 cave, after a distance of 41 feet, it widens to 6 feet, and the roof 

 suddenly ascends, leaving a head room of nearly 6 feet. The 

 first chamber measures in its extreme dimensions 15 feet by 6^^ 

 feet. Exactly as in Donegore Cave, the passage into the next 

 chamber is in the right hand corner, remote from the entrance. 



