County: Dublin Site name: DUBLIN: Meath Street/Hanbury Lane
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 96E0355
Author: Eoin Halpin, Archaeological Development Services Ltd.
Site type: Religious house - Augustinian canons
Period/Dating: Late Medieval (AD 1100-AD 1599)
ITM: E 714626m, N 733726m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.341337, -6.278671
Phase I of an assessment was carried out in November 1996 at Meath Street/Hanbury Lane, Dublin. At the time of the assessment only the south-west corner of the site was available.
Two test-pits and one test-trench were dug.
The first test-pit was excavated at the east end of the site, down to undisturbed natural, which occurred at 1 5.6m OD. A 0.4m-wide red brick and stone foundation wall was found directly on the virgin subsoil. It appeared to run north-south across the line of the test-pit.
The test-trench ran roughly east-west across the site. It was excavated to the top of the level at which material of archaeological importance was reached. At roughly mid-point along the trench, a wall was uncovered running east-west. It was composed of large blocks of worked stone and red brick (0.5m in width). From early maps it appears that this is the original rear wall of the Hanbury Lane properties.
A second test-pit was dug at the western end of the site. In this test-pit the undisturbed horizon occurred at 13.6m OD and was overlain by 1.5m of very dark grey to black organic silt clay. No pottery or other datable artefacts were recovered. The surface of this deposit was covered with large flat slabs. This feature, which was dug into the natural subsoil to a depth of at least 1.8m, could be a culverted drain or ditch.
Further testing is required across this site.
Power House, Pigeon House Harbour, Dublin 4
