County: Clare Site name: SCATTERY ISLAND
Sites and Monuments Record No.: SMR 67:24 Licence number: 00E0281
Author: Michael Tierney and Margot Ryan, Eachtra Archaeological Projects, for Management for Archaeology Underwater Ltd.
Site type: Road - road/trackway, Midden and Structure
Period/Dating: Multi-period
ITM: E 497098m, N 652303m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.612222, -9.519444
Monitoring took place of dredging work around a new pier to the east of Scattery Island, Co. Clare. It was intended to reduce the level of material on the estuary bed, allowing larger boats access to the pier.
The site is within 100m of the new pier being built by Dúchas on the eastern shore of Scattery Island. The dredging area is 30m by 130m and is archaeologically sensitive because of its location on the foreshore of the island and its position as the primary landing-site for the island. The maximum depth of material dredged was 0.8m (detection device licence number: 01R043).
The dredger used a grab bucket to lift materials from the seabed. These were kept in the hold and dumped onto the foreshore once or twice a day at high tide.
All dredged material was deposited on the foreshore for the purpose of metal detection. Where possible, the material was spread by a mechanical excavator to a consistent depth of 0.6m. It was then investigated with the metal-detector. A power hose was available to penetrate the material in the case of a positive hit with the metal-detector. No archaeological remains were recovered.
While the dredging was in progress, an archaeological impact assessment was carried out to determine the potential for damage to archaeological remains on the foreshore as a result of mechanical activity. A number of features were observed (a trackway, a shell midden, the bases of a number of walls, a stone-lined drain) and mitigation measures were suggested to protect them.
Riveroaks, Riverstown, Birr, Co. Offaly
