2023:523 - Kilmainham Mill, Rowerstown Lane, Kilmainham, Dublin

Archaeological monitoring of groundworks was carried out within the footprint of the grounds of Kilmainham Mill, Dublin 8 between August 2022 and May 2023. This was the second programme of archaeological monitoring works to be carried out at the site under licence no. 19E0657 and is referred to as ‘Phase 2’. These works follow on from earlier archaeological monitoring works, i.e., Phase 1, carried out in October 2019 (see Excavation Bulletin No. 2019:718).

Phase 2 works comprised the archaeological monitoring of a total of eleven fencing post foundation pits (FP01–11), two trial pits (TP01–02) and three trenches (T07–09) which were excavated as part of enabling works within the front yard area to the east of the upstanding nineteenth-century flour/textile mill structure listed on the Record of Protected Structures (RPS No. 7405). Works were undertaken as part of a wider stabilization, conservation, and restoration project at the site.

Monitoring of the Phase 2 groundworks revealed the uppermost levels of the yard area was comprised of modern made ground. Natural subsoil was not encountered during any of the excavations, however this was due as much to the build-up on site as to the relative shallowness of the groundworks (max depth 1.2m). Whilst no features of an archaeological nature were uncovered during the monitoring works, and the majority of the layers encountered were late-eighteenth/early-nineteenth century in date, one trial pit (TP02) contained a probable medieval/post-medieval garden soil layer as its base c.0.9m below ground level.

It was recommended that all future ground-breaking works at the site be subjected to licensed archaeological monitoring.