County: Wicklow Site name: BALLYNAMUDDAGH, Bray
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 00E0398
Author: Mary B. Deevy and Niall Gregory, ADS Ltd.
Site type: Prehistoric site - lithic scatter and Pit-burial
Period/Dating: Prehistoric (12700 BC-AD 400)
ITM: E 726923m, N 716030m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.179582, -6.101166
An assessment was carried out before the proposed construction of an 18-hole golf-course at Ballynamuddagh townland, Bray, Co. Wicklow, in response to planning conditions. Dúchas The Heritage Service recommended that this assessment should initially take the form of systematic field-walking of the ploughed fields. The field-walking took place over two weeks between 17 and 28 July. It was carried out methodically, recording the location of archaeological artefacts and features within 10m-square zones. Field-walking revealed a large quantity of struck flint throughout the site and a number of finished artefacts, including flint arrowheads, a chert point and two fragments of jet bracelets. A number of concentrations of struck flint were located throughout the site, including two concentrations of flint artefacts within the proposed location of Fairways 10 and 11. A possible site in the form of a burnt spread was also identified in Fairway 10. Test-excavations were carried out to assess the nature and extent of these sites in both fairways (see Excavations 2000, Nos 1081 and 1083). In addition, a number of possible sites were identified in the form of seven burnt spreads. Most of these lay outside the areas directly affected by the development, except for the one in Fairway 10.
The field-walking was followed by monitoring of mechanical ploughsoil-stripping within the proposed locations of the fairways, which took place over five weeks, between 27 July and 11 August by Mary Deevy and between 14 and 25 August by Niall Gregory. One large, significant archaeological site was uncovered during monitoring of topsoil-stripping in one fairway (see Excavations 2000, No. 1082). A number of small, isolated sites and potential sites were also uncovered during this monitoring. In consultation with Dúchas it was decided to excavate these small, isolated possible sites under the monitoring licence. These were generally small, shallow pits filled with burnt soil and charcoal, without artefacts. One of these small pits, however, had inclusions of burnt bone, struck flint and a number of pebbles (which appeared to have been deliberately chosen and included) in its charcoal-rich fill. Although the burnt bone has yet to be examined by a palaeopathologist, it is tentatively proposed that this may represent an isolated token cremation pit.
Windsor House, 11 Fairview Strand, Fairview, Dublin 3
