2022:068 - KILKENNY: Abbey Quarter, Gardens, Kilkenny

Archaeological monitoring of Geotechnical Site Investigations for the Abbey Creative Quarter and Urban Street developments was carried out within the former Smithwicks Brewery site, adjacent to St Francis’ Abbey (National Monument: 72). A total of sixteen trial pits and fifteen boreholes were monitored under licence (Note: monitoring of the same Site Investigations programme within St Francis Abbey National Monument was carried out under Ministerial Consent C000853/E004950; see Stevens 2022:060).

Archaeological features revealed in monitoring included a late medieval soil horizon, containing sherds of late medieval pottery and disarticulated animal bone, located adjacent to the south-east limit of St Francis Abbey national monument area.

Other significant findings included a pre-mid-seventeenth century lime-mortared wall, representing part of the Abbey precinct wall adjacent to The Brewhouse; a late nineteenth-century lime-mortared wall and one timber post to the north of the scheme, at the northern extent of the Urban Street; and finally a late nineteenth-century lime-mortared wall, part of the Market Building, in the far south-eastern end of the development close to the Tea House.

A series of possible post-medieval/late medieval garden soils were also revealed from across the development site, similar to those noted from previous archaeological test trenching under the same licence (see Stirland 2018).

Monitoring of boreholes revealed a similar soil profile to the archaeological stratigraphy noted in the trial pits, and two boreholes revealed finds of metalwork and isolated animal bone.