County: Antrim Site name: BALLYVASTON
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: —
Author: Brian Williams, Historic Monuments and Buildings Branch, DOE(NI)
Site type: Settlement cluster
Period/Dating: Prehistoric (12700 BC-AD 400)
ITM: E 730923m, N 878995m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 54.642141, -5.971637
In response to damage caused by motorcycles 'scrambling' on Cavehill, just north of Belfast, excavation was carried out in May 1986 by the Historic Monuments and Buildings Branch (DOENI). Prior to excavation, flints, sherds of pottery and charcoal were recovered in the disturbed soil by members of the staff of the Ulster Museum. Three trenches were excavated on a small terrace at 1000ft OD. Traces of an occupation site were revealed with many sherds of coarse pottery including Neolithic rim forms, flat-based fragments and a single sherd of what may be Grooved Ware.
Accompanying this material was a considerable body of flint debitage together with 60 flint scrapers and two barbed and tanged arrowheads. With the exception of two hearths which have not yet been dated, no structures were found.
