2025:570 - Drumcondra Church & Graveyard, Church Avenue, Drumcondra, Dublin

Planning permission was granted for a public toilet facility at the north-west corner of St John the Baptist church, a Recorded Monument (RMP DU018-013001) and Protected Structure (RPS 1518).

Archaeological monitoring for the works commenced in early September 2025, beginning with the excavation of foundations for the new WC facility and the demolition of the existing stone buttress. An area measuring 2.7m (north-west/south-east) by 2.5m was reduced using a small machine under archaeological supervision. Disarticulated Human Remains (DHR) were frequently encountered throughout the disturbed ground, with a particular concentration (C.04) uncovered in the north-western corner of the trench. These remains were contained within a pit (C.05) extending beyond the trench limits. The pit truncated some articulated lower limbs of a possible in-situ burial; no other articulated remains were identified. The pit contained commingled remains representing several individuals. It is likely that this material originated from disturbed formal burials, displaced during 19th-century church extension works or other, more recent, ground interventions within the churchyard.
Monitoring of a narrow trench excavated for the installation of a wastewater/foul line uncovered additional fragments of DHR within the underlying disturbed deposits. Other structural features recorded along the length of this trench included a brick-built vaulted structure, interpreted as a disused burial vault. This feature, located close to the church building, was preserved in situ. A stone-built culvert or drain, running east–west across the southern end of the graveyard, was also revealed. Finds from the trench included 19th-century pottery, a possible roof tile, and an architectural fragment.

The Disarticulated Human Remains are currently undergoing osteological analysis.