1995:072 - DUBLIN: Fishamble St./Exchange St. Lower/ Essex St. West, Dublin

A series of archaeological test investigations have been undertaken since 1989 on this site which lies to the west and adjacent to the church of SS Michael and John. It is bounded by Essex St. West, Fishamble St. and Exchange St. Lower. The site lies between the line of the Viking (mid-12th-century) and Anglo-Norman (13th-century) city walls just east of the supposed location of an inlet at the bottom of Fishamble St. known as the 'Fyschhe Slippe'.

The site was first tested by a series of boreholes. A total of six were opened and four were examined for archaeological purposes. Two test-pits were opened along the Essex St. West frontage to establish whether the remains of the Viking city wall occur on this part of the site. In June 1993, a portion of the site at the bottom of Fishamble St./Exchange St. Lower was tested by two trenches mechanically excavated to the top of the archaeological deposits. Excavation of the north-south trench revealed the remains of a wooden revetment and clay/gravel bank, which had previously been interpreted as a possible natural deposit in 1989. Two archaeological test-pits were opened up on the site in 1989 where possible evidence for the remains of the pre-Norman city wall was located. The present assessment involved a comprehensive testing by mechanically excavated slit trenches between 2 and 6 March 1995.

The results indicated that the deposit buildup on the site was similar to that recorded on the adjacent, archaeologically excavated site at SS Michael and John. It also revealed that three retaining structures, two with associated clay banks, and a fourth, light timber feature crossed the site from east to west. The testing revealed an essentially two-phase sequence of reclamation/development of the riverfront from the early 13th century through to the early 14th century, after which time the area seems to have remained open for cultivation inside the new Anglo-Norman city wall. The deposits and structures on the site are not complex. On the Fishamble St. frontage, however, excavation of a 4m-long trench revealed the foundations of a possible clay floor, and masonry wall foundation were revealed immediately below the backfilled basement level. Excavation was discontinued as it was feared that unnecessary damage would be caused. These could possibly relate to the earlier street line (noted on Speed's map of 1610, which is set back from the present street line). The 1990 and subsequent testing of the site failed to reveal evidence for the remains of the early Viking town wall.

Construction has not yet commenced on the site. The proposed building will be constructed on a piled foundation which should have minimal impact on the archaeological deposits and structures present. The layout has been designed to avoid the wooden structures and the ground beams will all lie above the archaeological levels.

Rath House, Ferndale Rd, Rathmichael, Co. Dublin