2001:238 - N-25 YOUGHAL BYPASS, Cork

Following initial identification during advanced testing and monitoring under licence 01E0224 (see Excavations 2001, No. 237), the following areas of archaeological interest were investigated.

AR4, Muckridge
This was a pit in the centre of the road-take at chainage 4500 in the townland of Muckridge. It was oval in plan and measured 1.7m in width north–south by 1.3m by 0.25m in depth. The upper fill consisted of moderately compact, mid-brown, sandy silt. It contained moderate medium-sized pebbles and stones and occasional charcoal flecking. The lower fill consisted of loosely compact, whitish-yellow clay containing occasional small pebbles and charcoal flecking.

The pit yielded a possible struck flint from the lower fills. There was no other deposition evidence to indicate its function. It was sited near to the excavation of the U-shaped late Iron Age structure Muckridge 1 (see Excavations 2001, No. 225).

AR19, Propoge
This was a small, truncated, subcircular pit in the centre of the road-take at chainage 3070 in the townland of Propoge. It measured 0.68m north–south by 0.65m by 0.1m in depth. There was a large flat stone at the centre of the base. It contained three fills, the lowest of which contained the partial base of a prehistoric pottery vessel. There was no evidence for cremated bone in the fills or any other evidence to suggest some ritual significance. The feature may merely have been a small cooking-pit for use with a cooking-pot. A carbon sample from this feature produced a 2-sigma calibration date of cal. BC 2140–1870 (cal. BP 4100–3820).

AR23, Ballyvergan West
This site consisted of two pits and a small spread of rake-out material in the centre of the road-take at chainage 2120 in the townland of Ballyvergan West.

The larger of the pits was subcircular in plan, had no discernible corners, and measured 1.3m north–south by 1m by 0.31m in depth. The tertiary fill of the pit was moderately compact dark brown sandy silt that contained moderate amounts of charcoal and small subangular stones. The secondary fill consisted of loosely compact dark red brown silty clay. It contained moderate amounts of subangular stones, occasional sandstone, and some clay stone and quartz. The primary fill of the feature appeared to be a charcoal-rich lens of material. It consisted of moderately compact dark brown charcoal-rich silt.

The smaller pit was subcircular, had no discernible corners and measured 0.67m north–south by 0.62m. The base of the cut was irregular and showed evidence of having been subjected to some process of oxidisation through heating. The single fill of the pit consisted of a compact light brown sandy silt. It contained frequent charcoal inclusions and occasional stones.
The spread of rake-out was moderately compact, greyish mid-brown, sandy silt. It contained moderate amounts of charcoal, frequent small stones and occasional larger stones. The deposit measured 0.6m north–south by 0.4m. It showed signs of oxidisation.

Both pits indicated exposure to heat. Two hypotheses can be suggested: (a) the pits are simply open-air hearths or cooking-pits and the deposit is an ashy rake-out; (b) the larger of the pits is a possible corn-dryer and the smaller pit the heat source, with the deposit being rake-out.

AR24, Ballyvergan West
This pit was in the centre of the road-take at chainage 2105 in the townland of Ballyvergan West. It was circular and measured 0.45m north–south by 0.41m by 0.21m deep. Both fills consisted of similar loosely compact, blackish, silty clay. They contained occasional small, irregular-shaped, fire-cracked stones and flecks of charcoal. A carbon sample from this feature produced a 2-sigma calibration date of cal. BC 1490–1200 (cal. BP 3440–3150). The presence of fire-shattered stone may indicate some industrial purpose, but the lack of finds does not support this.

AR25, Ballyvergan West
This hearth was at the centre of the road-take at chainage 1530 in the townland of Ballyvergan West. It was suboval, had no discernible corners and measured 1.2m north–south by 0.96m by 0.18m in depth. It contained three ashy fills sitting on an oxidised base. A carbon sample from this feature produced a 2-sigma calibration date of cal. BC 160–cal. AD 90 (cal. BP 2100–1860).

AR28, Clashadunna East
A small deposit of heat-shattered stone was initially uncovered at chainage 430 of the Old Killeagh Road realignment during advanced stripping in the townland of Clashadunna East. However, before resolution it was inadvertently damaged by machine trenching. The spread covered an area of 2m by 2.3m, but further investigation reduced its full extent to 1.4m north–south by 2m.

The excavation of a small test-trench across the spread found that it overlay a small pit cutting into the subsoil that was filled with the same spread material. The pit measured 1.1m north–south by 0.35m and was 0.4m deep. Its full east–west dimensions could not be ascertained as it was partially truncated by the machine-cut trench. It contained loose, grey-black, clayey silt, with frequent charcoal and burnt sandstone inclusions.

This feature was not a fulacht fiadh, as originally suspected, but rather an area containing a small circular concentration of burning, with an associated silty charcoal spread surrounding it. The damage to the archaeological deposits by the contractors’ trench was limited to the partial truncation of the eastern edge of the pit.

AR30, Clashadunna East
This feature, an isolated cooking-pit, was in the north edge of the road-take of the Old Killeagh Road realignment, at chainage 230 in the townland of Clashadunna East. The pit was suboval, had no discernible corners and measured 0.6m north–south by 0.42m by 0.09m in depth. It contained a single fill of moderately compact, brown-black, fine sandy silt that included charcoal, frequent burnt stone and broken angular chippings.

Unit 21, Boyne Business Park, Greenhills, Drogheda, Co. Louth