The food arguement doesn't hold up for many Irish souts. They nearly all have defensive features such as creeps and sentry points. Many are lockable from the inside and turn to the right. As with stairs in castles righthand turns are a defensive measure to hampered righthanded attackers.

Obviously, defending a souterrain is a last ditch measure. If I was attacking one after gaining control of a fort I'd just set a big fire in the entrance!

Also, if I had a big hole in the ground that wasn't used for most of the year I probably would hang a few joints of meat up. However, somewhere you would expect to find one chock full of storage pots and bones.

Anyone know of an excavated souterrain having being full of pots and suck like?

Actually, anyone know of one being found full of dead bodies?