County: Dublin Site name: CRUMLIN: 1–7 St Agnes Road
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 99E0305
Author: Donald Murphy, Archaeological Consultancy Services Ltd.
Site type: Ecclesiastical enclosure
Period/Dating: Medieval (AD 400-AD 1600)
ITM: E 712122m, N 731382m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.320819, -6.317084
A limited excavation of a proposed residential development was carried out at 1–7 St Agnes Road, Crumlin, Dublin, in July 1999. Previous testing of the site by Archaeological Projects Ltd (Excavations 1998, 43, 98E0362) revealed a ditch feature traversing the site from east to west. The ditch possibly represents an outer enclosing element around the medieval churchyard to the north of the present development site. The proposed development involves the construction of twelve houses, two of which would impinge on the enclosing ditch.
Two areas measuring 10m by 8.5m and 10m by 7.5m were excavated in the area of the ditch to be affected by the development. Both areas revealed consistent stratigraphy over the northern part of the site, and natural boulder clay was encountered at 0.7m below present ground level. It would appear that the ground above the natural soil had been disturbed in post-medieval to modern times, and the only surviving archaeological deposits were cut into the subsoil. These consist of the ditch and cultivation furrows in the area south of the ditch. The fill of the ditch was fairly consistent in the two areas examined, with a natural, grey silting of the ditch near the bottom followed by a stony, brown clay of late medieval date. The ditch almost certainly represents an enclosing element around the medieval church site and was purposely infilled in the later medieval period. The present graveyard wall may be indicative of an inner circular enclosure. The cultivation furrows uncovered during previous testing at this site are probably late medieval in date and occur outside the enclosing ditch of the medieval church.
15 Trinity Street, Drogheda, Co. Louth.
