County: Dublin Site name: FIELDWALKING AT ROBSWALLS, Malahide
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: —
Author: Avril Purcell, Margaret Gowen & Co. Ltd.
Site type: Prehistoric site - lithic scatter
Period/Dating: Prehistoric (12700 BC-AD 400)
ITM: E 724324m, N 745423m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.444216, -6.128514
Fieldwalking was requested on this site before its redevelopment as premises for a local football club. It is within 200m of a large flint scatter at Paddy’s Hill previously excavated by Keeling and Keeley (D. Keeling and V. Keeley, 1994 ‘Excavation of a flint scatter on Paddy’s Hill, Malahide, County Dublin’, PRIA 94C (1994)).
The development site has been ploughed for some years and was ploughed several weeks before field-walking began. It was then systematically field-walked, and worked flint was retrieved. A total of 55 pieces of worked flint were collected from the ploughsoil. Of these, 27 were modified tools including nineteen scrapers, six modified flakes and two blades. The remaining objects recovered included unmodified flakes and debitage. Many of the objects retrieved were heavily patinated and weathered.
The find spot of each object was plotted on a distribution map to see whether concentrations of objects were apparent. The results showed that the objects were scattered over the entire area. On the lower ground to the north of the development there was a slightly denser spread of objects than on the upper ground to the south. However, this pattern may relate to the direction of ploughing and the fall of ground. Although a considerable volume of objects was recovered, no particular area of intensive activity could be pinpointed on the basis of the field-walking. Further work is to be undertaken in tandem with development.
2 Killiney View, Albert Road Lower, Glenageary, Co. Dublin
