County: Carlow Site name: RIVER BARROW, St Mullins
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 00E0001
Author: Donald Murphy, Archaeological Consultancy Services Ltd.
Site type: No archaeology found
Period/Dating: N/A
ITM: E 671926m, N 677525m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.843856, -6.932296
An assessment of a proposed new slipway was carried out at the River Barrow, St Mullins, Co. Carlow, on 5 January 2000 for the Waterways Section of Dúchas The Heritage Service. The site is located in close proximity to SMR 26:11, which is listed as St Mullins monastic site in the RMP for County Carlow. An existing crude slipway, composed of material dredged from the River Barrow, will be removed as part of the development, and some new foundations will be removed as part of the development, and some new foundations will be put in along the bank of the river.
Three test-trenches were excavated on the site of the proposed development. The first was excavated through the existing slipway, which extends out into the river from the riverbank. The other two trenches were excavated along the lines of the proposed new slipway on the bank of the river itself. All three failed to reveal any evidence for the existence of archaeological finds or stratigraphy in the proposed area of the development.
It would appear from the material excavated that the entire area below the existing carpark represents ground that has been reclaimed from the river and that the original river’s edge is further to the north, probably close to the line of the existing field boundary. It would appear that the majority of this reclamation has been done in relatively recent times. Owing to the lack of any significant archaeological stratigraphy, there will be little or no impact from the development as proposed, and archaeological monitoring of the excavation of material will be sufficient to identify any other features or finds that may exist.
15 Trinity Street, Drogheda, Co. Louth
