County: Laois Site name: FAIRGREEN, Aghaboe Abbey
Sites and Monuments Record No.: SMR 22:19 Licence number: 94E0050
Author: Dominic Delany
Site type: No archaeology found
Period/Dating: N/A
ITM: E 632643m, N 685737m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.921470, -7.514569
Archaeological test-excavation in advance of a proposed car park development was undertaken in April 1994. The site covers a large triangular-shaped area measuring 90m north-south and narrowing from 32m at the north end to just 2m at the south end. The recently-restored 14th-century Dominican friary church stands to the north of the site and the existing parish church, incorporating the turret of a 13th-century Augustinian priory, stands to the north-east. On the 1st edition of the Ordnance Survey 6" map for Co. Laois (1841, sheet No. 22) the site is named 'Fairgreen'. Following the demise of the fairs, in the mid-late 19th century, the site was planted with trees which are shown on all subsequent OS maps. A local farmer cleared the site about 10 years ago.
Four 1m wide trenches, varying from 25m to 50m in length, were mechanically excavated at the site. There was much evidence of ground disturbance attributable to the recent land clearance in the area. No archaeological deposits or features were encountered.
20–21 Main St., Portlaoise, Co. Laois
