1999:306 - MAINISTIR CHIARÁIN, Inis Mór, Galway

The fourth season of excavation at Mainistir Chiaráin took place over eleven weeks between late June and mid-September 1999. Two new cuttings were opened this season to provide links between the church construction and Cuttings 1 and 2. Cutting 3 was opened in the baulk between Cuttings 1 and 2, leaving a thin (0.01m) baulk in situ to maintain a profile. A 3m-wide extension was also opened to the church in order to provide links between the church construction and the construction level uncovered in Cutting 2 in 1998 (Excavations 1998, 84). Cutting 4, measuring c. 3m x 3m, was opened between the eastern end of the church and Cutting 2. A 2m-wide baulk was left between Cuttings 3 and 4 to provide support for the church wall.

In Cutting 1 the lower fills of the stone-lined drain exposed in 1998 were excavated. Excavation confirmed that a natural gryke in the limestone was utilised for one side of the east-west section of this L-shaped feature. Large boulders blocked the eastern end of the feature, and limestone slabs lined the sides. To the south several layers of redeposited clay were identified underlying the cobbled surface excavated in 1998, indicating that a clay platform had been constructed here before the cobbled surface was laid. Underlying the clay layers a large, bowl-shaped pit was cut into natural clay. This pit was filled with a charcoal-rich deposit, and the sides were fire-affected. A number of stake-holes were identified surrounding this feature. Samples of charcoal were taken for radiocarbon dating, in addition to large soil samples for flotation. A test-pit excavated around this feature confirmed that the pit was dug into sterile clay.

In Cutting 3 a section of the robbed-out east wall of Building B was identified adjacent to the church. This section consisted of some stone in situ as well as a number of socket holes. The east and west cuts of the wall were also identified. In the central area of the cutting a long agricultural furrow provided confirmation of the nature of the disturbance east of Building A. In the southernmost corner of the cutting the line of the south wall of Building B was identified, in addition to a flagstone surface abutting it to the south. This surface provides a link with a similar surface in Cutting 1. A metalled surface was identified extending from the church wall to the south wall of Building B.

The foundation cut for the church was identified underlying the east wall of Building B. This cut was c. 1m wide and was filled with a sandy clay with a large amount of rubble. An earlier construction level and foundation trench were found to underlie this secondary cut. This sequence was confirmed in Cutting 4. There were some indications of an earlier construction phase in Cutting 1 in 1998, but because of the wall collapse the cutting had to be backfilled without reaching natural subsoil. Samples of charcoal and mortar were taken for radiocarbon dating from both construction phases.The large pit identified in the eastern edge of Cutting 2 continued into Cutting 3, and a number of fills were excavated. These consisted primarily of sandy deposits with rubble. The rest of the lime pit identified in the north-west corner of Cutting 2 was also excavated. This small pit was linear rather than circular and was orientated east-west. A small pit filled with a charcoal-rich deposit was identified at the base of the earliest construction surface. Similar charcoal deposits associated with the earlier construction were identified in Cuttings 1 and 4. A third pit was identified in the southern corner of the cutting. This pit underlay the line of the south wall of Building B. It was backfilled with clay.

Cutting 4 provided an opportunity to follow the parallel furrows identified in Cutting 2 in 1998. Excavation adjacent to the church wall confirmed that these were a series of agricultural furrows. An additional furrow, cut at right angles to the three north-south furrows, was also uncovered. The foundation cut for the church wall was also identified. An earlier construction phase, including an earlier cut and deposits of mortar, charcoal and stone, was identified.This research project is funded by the Heritage Services, Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands, on the recommendation of the National Committee for Archaeology of the Royal Irish Academy, and by the University Research Expeditions Program of the University of California.

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