County: Louth Site name: MARSHES UPPER
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: —
Author: Simon Buteaux, for the National Parks & Monuments Branch, Office of Public Works
Site type: Souterrain and Hut site
Period/Dating: Medieval (AD 400-AD 1600)
ITM: E 706428m, N 804911m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.982494, -6.377339
Earth-lowering operations for an extension to the Accuray factory, Dundalk, threatened a possible settlement area associated with the souterrain discovered in 1980 during the construction of the factory. Excavations carried out in 1980 under the direction of Mr. Paul Gosling had revealed a small stone hut and a ditch associated with the souterrain.
In August-September 1985 excavations were conducted by Birmingham University Field Archaeology Unit on behalf of the O.P.W. in the area under threat immediately to the E of Mr. Gosling's excavations. Careful stripping and cleaning of an area c. 20m x 25m failed to reveal any further substantial remains of Early Christian settlement, but considerable disturbance had taken place due to construction activity and a series of agricultural and quarry features of post-medieval date.
The ditch revealed in the 1980 excavations was traced for a further 10m and produced five sherds of souterrain ware. It had been re-cut. A second ditch, not obviously associated with the first but probably of Early Christian date, produced a whetstone. An abraded fragment of a shale bracelet was found redeposited in a post-medieval context.
