1998:487 - FARRANOO/GARRANKEEL/BELLEEK/KILMORE-MOY, Mayo

Before the commencement of the development the site, an area of c. 100 acres, consisted of undulating, well-drained pastureland and pockets of waterlogged peat. The removal of topsoil by bulldozers and mechanical diggers was monitored.

Two spreads of heat-fractured stones, each with an associated trough, were identified at the south-west area of the development. The spreads were positioned at a distance of c. 20m apart, at the edge of a low-lying, waterlogged area. The ground level rose to the west and south of the sites.

The spreads were excavated by hand. Spread 1 was subrectangular in plan. It measured 13.5m north- south by 11.5m and ranged from 0.2m to 0.5m high. It was composed of a combination of heat-fractured sandstone (80%) and limestone (10%) in a charcoal-rich matrix. Two modern field drains and a horse, buried in a machine-dug pit, cut the spread.

A trough underlay the north-east edge of the spread. It was oval in plan and measured 1.55m along its long axis and 0.55m deep.

Spread 2 was sub-oval in plan. It measured 8.2m east-west by 4m and reached a maximum height of 0.26m. Modern agricultural activities and topsoil-stripping had truncated the northern edge. The primary components were heat-fractured sandstone (80%) and limestone (20%).

A trough was sealed and partly filled by the burnt mound material. Its northern end had been removed by recent agricultural activity. It survived for a length of 2.75m and ranged from 0.6m to 0.76m wide. The sides were straight, and its base was flat.

The excavation retrieved no small finds of archaeological significance.