County: Cork Site name: COOLVALLANANE BEG
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 01E0428
Author: Margaret McCarthy, Archaeological Services Unit, University College Cork
Site type: No archaeology found
Period/Dating: N/A
ITM: E 562404m, N 552706m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 51.725455, -8.544201
Pre-development monitoring was carried out at Coolvallanane Beg, Kinsale, Co. Cork, as part of a planning application for the construction of a single dwelling-house. The site lies within an area where there is a dense concentration of fulachta fiadh. The surrounding area consists of a gently undulating landscape, mostly under pasture. The fulachta fiadh in the field opposite the site were noted as extensive spreads of burnt material when the land was under tillage. These are no longer visible on the surface as the field is now in pasture. The remains of a stone viaduct for the disused West Cork railway are visible to the west of the site.
The assessment entailed investigating those areas where maximum ground disturbance will occur. The topsoil was removed from the entire area of the proposed house, the entranceway and the driveway. The full extent of the percolation area was also investigated. The A-horizon was removed with a wide toothless bucket to the top of the subsoil, and the surface was subsequently examined for any in situ archaeology. Trenching revealed an undisturbed soil profile in all areas. No archaeological features or finds were encountered.
