County: Antrim Site name: BALLYBOLEY
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: —
Author: C.J. Lynn, Historic Monuments and Buildings Branch, Department of the Environment (N.J.).
Site type: Souterrain and Habitation site
Period/Dating: Early Medieval (AD 400-AD 1099)
ITM: E 738493m, N 902457m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 54.850783, -5.843268
Mechanical clearance of a farm garden in the summer of 1977 exposed parts of a hitherto unknown souterrain. A section of the machine trench showed traces of an intact occupation layer with paving 20cm below the adjacent surface. There was no trace of an encircling ringfort and none was shown on the earliest O.S. map so a small excavation was mounted to see if there was any surface structure associated with the souterrain as indicted by the occupation layer and cobbling. The entire length of the souterrain, which was relatively simple in design was emptied of fallen lintels, modern fill and, near the entrance chute, some Early Christian period debris including large portions of several souterrain-ware vessels. The surface excavation proved somewhat disappointing as the scatter of cobbling, occupation material and a hearth revealed within the restricted area available for excavation failed to resolve into a definite structural arrangement but sufficient survived to indicate that there was an above-ground habitation at the souterrain.
