2000:0634 - CASTLE GUARD MOTTE, Dawson's Demense, Ardee, Louth

Test-trenching took place as part of an assessment to determine the archaeological potential of an area immediately to the east of Castle Guard Motte (see Excavations 2000, No. 633). Twelve test-trenches were excavated across the site, and twenty features were uncovered. Only the surface extent of each feature was cleaned, and none were sectioned.

There was evidence for some prehistoric activity, in the form of five pieces of worked flint and two circular pits, which were 1m in diameter. Activity extended across the northern half of the site. The flint artefacts included a complete blade, two blade fragments, a worked core and a waste flake. Only one blade fragment was found in situ on the surface of a pit. The rest were recovered from topsoil within the trenches and on the field surface. The presence of a core might indicate some working of flint on the site.

A possible structure of unknown date was also uncovered. It consisted of two post-pits, and two curved features filled with brown, silty clay, spread across a 5m band.

Other features of uncertain provenance include a pair of large, flat stones set into a cut or depression with no discernible fill, a possible isolated post-hole and a trapezoid-shaped ditch and a linear trench, which are located 4m apart.

Thirteen modern features were uncovered, five of which relate to a ploughed-out field boundary at the northern edge of the site, which is indicated on the first and second editions of the OS 6-inch sheets. The rest are mainly field drains.

These features will be resolved at a later date, should development proceed.

On completion of this test excavation, a report was compiled summarising the results of archaeological investigations in the area. The report made recommendations as to the future development of the area and the preservation of Castle Guard Motte, including the implementation of a buffer zone around the motte.

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