County: Donegal Site name: DRUMFAD LOWER
Sites and Monuments Record No.: SMR 18:17 Licence number: 00E0755
Author: Richard Crumlish, Archaeological Services Unit Ltd.
Site type: Standing stone
Period/Dating: Undetermined
ITM: E 622700m, N 936668m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 55.176774, -7.643645
Rescue excavation of a collapsed standing stone in Drumfad Lower townland, Co. Donegal, was carried out between 16 and 20 October 2000. The stone appears to have been blown over during a storm in December 1998. The excavation was carried out in advance of the re-erection of the stone by Dúchas The Heritage Service.
The standing stone was described in The Archaeological survey of County Donegal as: ‘A standing stone 2m high x 1.4m wide at base x .3m maximum thickness; WNW–ESE. It is prominently sited on a high, level plateau overlooking lower ground to W.’ The stone appears to be a conglomerate and measures 2.58m high (max.). Following its removal from the immediate area, a roughly linear depression was visible, measuring 1.5m east–west, 0.5–0.9m in width and 0.2m in depth. To the north of the depression were a number of small angular rocks embedded in the topsoil.
One trench was opened, sited to cover the immediate area around the stone’s original location. It was 5m from the eastern field boundary and 17m from the south-western field boundary. It measured 3m square.
The stratigraphy consisted of topsoil, 0.15–0.3m thick, below which was natural subsoil, a cut, a layer of stones and orange/brown, friable silt loam. The natural subsoil consisted of a cream/light yellow, firm, sandy silt loam with frequent pebbles and small stones. It was found at the base of the stratigraphy over the entire trench area. The cut was also below the layer of stone and the friable silt loam. It was subrectangular in plan, oriented east–west, 1.65m long, 0.95m wide (max.) and 0.15–0.25m deep. The stones were within and along the sides of the cut. They were situated partially within the topsoil and partially within the friable silt loam. The orange/brown, friable silt loam was found in and around the stones on the northern side of the cut. It was 1.6m east–west, 0.4m wide (max.) and 0.1–0.2m thick.
The topsoil contained modern artefacts—pottery sherds, glass fragments and rusted metal nails. A flint scraper was recovered from the interface between the topsoil and the redeposited natural subsoil.
The cut was the socket for the standing stone, which had rounded corners and a roughly flat base. The stones were packing-stones that were used to hold the stone upright. They remained on three sides of the socket, absent on the western side only. Their partial absence from the southern side of the socket is accounted for by the direction in which the stone collapsed, i.e. to the north, probably uprooting most of the packing-stones on the southern side. The friable silt loam was undoubtedly redeposited natural subsoil, inserted around the base of the stone with the packing-stones to hold it in place.
The excavation of the original location of the collapsed standing stone produced evidence of its socket but little else. Unfortunately the flint scraper could not be ascribed to a secure context, which would have helped date the standing stone.
Purcell House, Oranmore, Co. Galway
