A clip purporting to show a secret doorway embedded in a rockface was created as part of a promotional campaign for Northern Ireland’s Giant’s Causeway, a World Heritage Site filled with basalt columns.
Accounts have shared the video seemingly showing a door opening along a column of basalt, with an example viewable (here).
The clip was shared as part of a promotional campaign for the nature reserve made by the Northern Ireland National Trust, however, and is not proof of a conspiracy, as social media videos allude.
A spokesperson for the National Trust confirmed to Reuters that the clip was commissioned by the Trust as part of a promotional campaign.
The clip was uploaded by the Trust in November 2015 with the hashtag #NTSleepingGiant (bit.ly/3M0kHdL).
At the time, staff at the Giant’s Causeway gave visitors a map and clues on how to find the cave that featured in the promotional clip (here), (here).
One clip, purporting to show a news report on the secret door, uploaded to the Facebook page advertising the reserve, features text that the video is “a marketing feature for the National Trust” (viewable at 25s) (here).
The clip of the passageway seemingly opening between the columns of basalt can be seen in the same clip at 48s.
The Trust shared various images and clips using the aforementioned hashtag (here).
The Giant’s Causeway in Antrim, Northern Ireland consists of over 40,000 basalt columns created during volcanic events 50 to 60 million years ago (here).
VERDICT
Missing context. The clip stems from a promotional campaign made by the Northern Ireland National Trust released in 2015.
This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our fact-checking work (here).
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