1997:222 - PORTUMNA CASTLE, Portumna, Galway

A further season of archaeological excavation commenced at Portumna Castle in March 1997. Previous excavations here concentrated on the castle interior and the main conduit exiting the castle at the south-west corner-tower. An excavation of the drive/avenue was also conducted in 1995 (Excavations 1995, 37–8; Excavations 1996, 46).

The castle and its grounds are currently being restored by the National Monuments Section of Dúchas The Heritage Service; this has been ongoing since the 1970s.

The present season of excavation concentrated on the kitchen garden to the north-east of the castle and the area immediately outside the castle to the south-west and east.

In the kitchen garden excavation revealed the presence of gravel paths on all four sides of the garden about 4m in from each wall. The paths maintained a consistent width of 1.8m and were exposed directly under the sod. A central cobbled pathway was also exposed running north-south through the garden. The paths as found are represented on a 1791 plan of the grounds, on which is also shown a small doorway leading into the outer courtyard through which access was gained to the garden. This door is now blocked up but can still be clearly seen in the east wall of the courtyard.

In addition to the paths a French drain was exposed alongside the western path, running from south to north, and may have been used to help irrigate the garden. Some pits exposed at various locations immediately beside the paths probably represented the location of small trees or shrubs, which are also visible on the 1791 plan. A cobbled floor of the stables was excavated in the south-east corner of the garden and was found to date from the early 19th century. A row of postholes uncovered down the middle of the west path represents timber sheds which stood here in modern times. Some evidence was retrieved for the laying out of vegetable beds, and soil samples are currently being examined. The paths were reconstructed after the excavation and the garden is now being used by a FÁS Community Employment Scheme as a horticultural training centre.

A full excavation was also undertaken immediately outside the castle on the south and west sides, where the foundations of the bawn wall were uncovered, along with a number of stone-lined drains leading from the downpipes. The bawn wall was cut through by two stone drains immediately to the south of the south-east tower, indicating that at least two of the drains were constructed after the bawn wall was demolished. The bawn wall was uncovered some 7m out from the castle on the south side and could clearly be seen to continue eastwards into the woods. A wall running north-south joined this one and enclosed the castle on its east side about 4m out from the castle wall. This wall continued northwards and enclosed the courtyard to the north, most of which still stands today. The bawn wall was also exposed along the west side of the castle about 4m out from the castle wall.

The bawn wall dates from the same time as the construction of the castle, the early 17th century. It would appear that it did not stand for long before being demolished. The 1791 plan of the castle grounds shows the wall demolished along the south side of the castle and a wall enclosing the entire south garden. The stone drains leading from the four downpipes on the south and west sides of the castle all date from the same time as the construction of the castle and the bawn wall.

Other garden features uncovered included the foundations of a possible 17th/early 18th-century shed built against the inside of the bawn wall to the west of the castle, and a 17th-century cobbled pathway running along the south side of the castle. The porch on the south side of the castle incorporates a memorial plaque to Fury, the family dog who died in 1797. Her grave and her remains were uncovered just beneath the plaque, cut through the cobbled path. An early 17th-century building was also uncovered to the east of the castle below the line of the bawn wall and awaits further excavation, along with a later range of buildings further to the north, built during the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

Four trenches were also excavated to the north of the castle to facilitate pipe-laying to take the water from the downpipes on this side of the castle. The original stone-lined drains leading from the downpipes were uncovered but not excavated. They appear to lead towards the courtyard on the east side of the castle.

Several trenches excavated near the medieval abbey to the east of the castle grounds where lamp-posts were to be inserted were also monitored. A substantial stone wall was uncovered in two of the trenches just to the north-east of the abbey, on the opposite side of the road running north-south, which may be part of the medieval priory. A burial extended east-west was located in a third trench immediately opposite the south-east corner of the chancel of the priory church, indicating that the graveyard around the medieval priory extended further east beyond the present roadway. ESB trenches excavated here and monitored by Con Manning in December 1996 also revealed the presence of several burials along the west side of the roadway just outside the walls of the abbey.

Further excavation is expected to take place in 1998.

5 Trinity Street, Drogheda, Co. Louth