1980-84:0079 - DOWNPATRICK: Demesne of Down td, Down

The excavation sampled the potential of gardensa and orchards likely to be developed between English St. and Market St. Twelve small trenches were dug and a deep overburden of topsoil, with sherds of medieval pottery present, was identified. A ditch, 2.5m wide, was found to be running along the hillside with medieval pottery and a late 12th/early 13th-century coin in its lower stony fill (possibly internal bank collapse). This could have been a ‘military’ feature defining the English St. ridge and thus the early urban nucleus of Downpatrick.
Further downslope, an area of industrial features was uncovered. The ground plans, accumulations of ash and a stone flue suggest kilns, though there were no finds of wasters or slag.