County: Galway Site name: GALWAY: 26 Abbeygate Street Upper
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 98E0287
Author: Richard Crumlish, Archaeological Services Unit Ltd.
Site type: House - 16th/17th century
Period/Dating: Post Medieval (AD 1600-AD 1750)
ITM: E 529781m, N 725327m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.273628, -9.052766
The rescue excavation of a small area to be used for the laying of a sewer pipe, at No. 26 Upper Abbeygate Street, Galway, was carried out on 15 June 1998. It was undertaken during development works at the premises and on recommendation of the National Monuments Service, following a site assessment prepared by this writer in May 1998.
The site lies within the original city walls, in an area that contains a number of architectural features dating to the 16th and 17th centuries. Nos 26 and. 28 (to the north-west) were originally the one late medieval building, containing 16th-century window fragments and a 17th-century armorial fireplace, divided up in the 19th century.
A single trench was excavated by hand at No. 26. It was orientated north-east/south-west and was 6.4m long, 0.5–0.6m wide and 0.4–0.45m deep. It was begun at 1m from the north-west boundary wall and 0.5m from the north-east boundary wall.
The stratigraphy encountered consisted of a rubble fill, to a depth of 0.25–0.4m, below which was a ceramic sewerage pipe. Below the pipe at its north-east end were Liscannor flags, 30mm thick, within the rubble fill. Also found below the rubble fill, along a small number of sections of the trench towards its south-west end, was natural subsoil and boulder clay. These were visible in the base of the trench.
No artefacts were recovered, and no features were in evidence. The stratigraphy encountered was completely disturbed because the trench lay along the line of an older sewerage pipe, probably dating to earlier this century.
Purcell House, Oranmore, Co. Galway
