County: Offaly Site name: CORHILL BOG, Lisdermot
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 00E0468
Author: Jane Whitaker, ADS Ltd.
Site type: Platform - peatland
Period/Dating: Early Medieval (AD 400-AD 1099)
ITM: E 613219m, N 727554m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.298119, -7.801700
This excavation was carried out in Corhill Bog, Co. Offaly, as part of the 2000 Bord na Móna Archaeological Mitigation Project. This site was first recorded in section in 1996 during the IAWU field survey. It was visible on opposing drain faces, immediately below the field surface. It was constructed of light hazel rods, six to seven rods deep in places. The cutting size and location were determined in the mitigation strategy document prepared by Dúchas The Heritage Service and the National Museum.
The 2m x 2m cutting was placed on the field surface over the location recorded in 1996. The site was composed of narrow brushwood rods ranging from 9mm to 26mm in diameter with a minimum length of 0.19–1.53m (the site was cut at an oblique angle by the drain). Most of the elements were laid in a north–south direction. Only six pegs were revealed; four of these were located at the southern tips of the brushwood rods and held the rods in place. These pegs were 20–40mm in diameter. Most of the 45 upper rods had evidence for woodworking at their southern tips, all of which were chisel-points. Most of these were simple, single-faceted chisel-points, although some were multi-faceted. There was little evidence for bark on any of the elements.
After the upper longitudinal elements were removed, a further 35 elements were revealed. Similarly, these ranged from 9mm to 28mm in diameter and from 0.9m to 0.69m in length. None of these elements had any remaining bark, and, like the upper layer, most had evidence for woodworking. These again were all chisel-points.
This site was located in a part of Corhill Bog that had a large number of the more enigmatic site types. This site was primarily identified as a ‘puddle togher’, a term that has been used in the past to describe wood/bundles of wood thrown over a particularly wet patch of bog. The peat directly underneath this site does not appear to have been too different to the peat at the south of the ends of the brushwood rods. It is possible that the wood was intended to serve as a small, dry platform for hunting.
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