1992:167 - CLONMEL: Dowd's Lane, Tipperary

Archaeological excavations were carried out at Dowd's Lane, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary, between 6th–24th July 1992, with a further week of monitoring between 20th–24th July. As the site was known to be occupied by the old medieval town wall of Clonmel, archaeological excavations were carried out prior to development. The site lies within the south-east sector of what was the medieval town.

Trench A
This was specifically excavated along the line of the town wall. The wall lay 0.3m-0.8m beneath ground level and extended the length of the cutting running approx. north-south for a distance of 22.75m. The width varied between 1.8m-1.9m and the depth from 2.1m-2.5m. It was constructed from limestone and a small amount of sandstone with a well defined outer face. The inner face was rougher and less well defined and narrowed towards the base. Traces of lime mortar were noted. Removal of the wall revealed a core of rough, uncut limestone and sandstone intermixed with a coarse, loose clay and small stones. In general, the wall appeared to be well built and in good condition. However at its southern end, the outer/ditch face had been replaced with redbrick. The wall was also disturbed by 2 stone-built drains which appeared 18th/19th century in date on evidence of the finds.

Trench B
This trench ran west-east away from the town wall. Excavation revealed a large flat bottomed ditch, 3.15m deep and at least 5.5m wide, outside the town wall. As the ditch ran out under the road the total width could not be established. Both the ditch and the wall were cut into the natural riverine gravels of the site. A layer of fill appeared to represent original ditch fill while the lack of tip lines suggested this involved one major episode of infilling rather than a gradual filling in over time. The finds from this layer suggest a late 17th- or 18th-century date for this. This in turn suggests the need for defences had waned by then plus a new need to expand outside the town walls by the 18th century.

Trench C
This trench ran east-west away from the town wall. Excavation revealed the existence of an interior bank built up from the natural subsoil of the site. The way the wall was built against this subsoil and narrowed towards its base also suggests that it was built on or against a pre-existing bank.

A few sherds of medieval pottery were recovered from the site. Two of these were found wedged against the town wall, sitting slightly above the natural, bank material, suggesting a medieval context for the origins of the wall. Historical evidence also suggests the building of the wall commenced from 1298 onwards when permission was given to raise taxes to finance the building of defences.

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