County: Wexford Site name: CASTLELAND
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 99E0527 ext.
Author: Angela Wallace, Margaret Gowen & Co. Ltd.
Site type: Excavation - miscellaneous
Period/Dating: Undetermined
ITM: E 701428m, N 649444m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.586811, -6.503168
A preliminary archaeological assessment, in tandem with geophysical survey, was carried out on this site by Claire Walsh in October 1999 (Excavations 1999, 302). The report recommended a further phase of testing before construction. Further investigations were carried out in April and May 2000; the previous licence was transferred and extended for this work. The development site is c. 20,400m2 and lies c. 60m south-west of the early 13th-century castle of Ferns.
A portion of an irregular ditch feature with three conjoined pits was identified in the south-west area of the site. The ditch enclosed an area 14–16m wide; the exposed perimeter of the ditch measured 31m in total. Within the area enclosed by the ditch a small oval pit and an area of burning were identified.
Two small circular pits were identified in the southern area of the site. A few scattered sherds of post-medieval, medieval and possible prehistoric pottery were recovered in the development site. The lack of finds and recognisable characteristics of known site types makes it difficult to interpret the nature and function of this site without environmental and radiocarbon analysis.
2 Killiney View, Albert Road Lower, Glenageary, Co. Dublin
