2000:1022 - MULLINGAR: Blackhall Street, Westmeath

Commissioned by Westmeath County Council, test-trenching and monitoring here were undertaken in compliance with recommendations made by Dúchas The Heritage Service, as the development was being undertaken within the zone of archaeological significance for Mullingar. The proposed project involved the development of a carpark at Blackhall Street. Previous archaeological work in the town resulted in the recovery of archaeological features and artefacts. The superimposition of Richard’s map of 1691 onto the modern town layout indicated a possible house site in the vicinity of the development.

Four trenches were mechanically excavated. The stratigraphy revealed in Trenches 1 and 2 indicated no evidence of features/deposits of archaeological significance. The layers present comprised topsoil, subsoil and a natural gravel layer. Finds included occasional animal bone, modern glass and 20th-century pottery and clay pipe fragments. Trenches 3 and 4 had a similar stratigraphy, except that in the south end the natural layer was significantly lower than in the north one. It appears that the natural was cut into in both of these areas, resulting in a deep cut feature. Filled with subsoil, this ditch feature extended for a maximum depth of 2.4m. Finds from the ditch fill were similar to those found elsewhere on the site and consisted of 20th-century glass, clay and pottery fragments. The original extent of the ditch is impossible to calculate, as the development of the adjacent site would have resulted in the removal of the ditch feature. In addition to the archaeological pre-development testing, the subsequent removal of topsoil was monitored, with no features of archaeological significance being uncovered.

Ballydavid South, Athenry, Co. Galway