1998:378 - ATTYFLIN, Limerick

NMI Burial Excavation Records

County: Limerick Site name: ATTYFLIN

Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 97E0476

Author: Paul Logue, Archaeological Development Services Ltd.

Site type: No archaeology found

Period/Dating: N/A

ITM: E 551781m, N 648484m

Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.585499, -8.711554

Assessment excavations were undertaken at this site on 28–9 January 1998. The area to be investigated lay along the route of the proposed Adare-Annacotty Bypass, between two known archaeological sites. These were both probable fulachta fiadh (AR8 and AR8A), and the excavation was undertaken to assess the possibility of there being further archaeological evidence in the area. A previous geophysical survey identified an anomaly to the west of AR8. This was orientated north-west/south-east for a distance of c. 24m and had a maximum width of 1m.

The site lay in two adjacent fields, close to the N20 Cork-Limerick road, in Attyflin townland, Co. Limerick. The field to the south of the main field boundary was designated Area 1, while the field to the north was termed Area 2. Both fields sloped gently to the east and contained areas of wet ground.

Ten trenches encompassing 610m2 were excavated by machine. All were c. 2m wide and varied from 15m (Trench 1) to 45m (Trench 6) long. Area 1 contained three trenches (Trenches 1–3), and Area 2 contained seven (Trenches 4–10).

Two trenches were excavated across the line of the geophysical anomaly in Area 1, but nothing of archaeological significance was uncovered. The anomaly can most likely be attributed to readings created by a band of orange-pink clay in Trench 2 and a patch of very stony subsoil in Trench 1. Both the clay and the stones were naturally occurring and therefore do not represent archaeological features. Nothing of archaeological significance was uncovered in any of the other eight trenches.

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