2001:517 - HIGH ISLAND, Galway

The seventh season of excavation on High Island, Co. Galway, was undertaken over a period of seven weeks in June/July 2001. Following on from previous years’ work (Excavations 1995–2000) excavation was undertaken in four areas (1, 4, 7, 8).

In Area 1 (between the church and the enclosure wall) excavation was concentrated in a small trench outside the north-east corner of the church. The trench was opened with the aim of establishing the presence or otherwise of an earlier level of paving in this area. Excavation provided no evidence to suggest the existence of a paving level other than that visible today.

In Area 4 (the open-plan trench north of the church, incorporating the smaller of the two standing beehive huts, Cell A, the later subrectangular structure and the northern flank of the cashel wall) excavation continued from last year’s work but, owing to the depth and complexity of the deposits and structures in this location, was not completed. A distinctive fragmented schist layer formed the foundations of Cell A. The layer extended away from the cell to the west, where it also formed part of the foundations for the earliest cashel wall. A diverse range of deposits formed the fill of the wall and varied considerably from those outside the wall on the northern side. In this area the deposits pre-dated the subrectangular structure; however, excavation was confined to within its walls. A significant quantity of corroded iron was recovered but no floor level was identified.

Excavation in Area 7 (chamber in west wall of cashel) was concentrated on the earliest deposits along the entrance passage of the chamber (upper levels and rubble excavated in previous years). The entrance passage walls were set in a shallow cut in the natural schist. A spread of weathered schist and wind-blown soil c. 20–30mm deep covered the natural ground.

In Area 8 (open-plan trench surrounding exterior of the largest of the two standing beehive huts, Cell B) excavation continued from the previous year with no new areas opened. A revetting wall abutting the south-east corner of the church enclosure wall was dismantled and the original (but collapsed) line of the church enclosure wall was revealed. The church enclosure wall was reconstructed along its original line.

The partially excavated drain and trough situated in front of the entrance to Cell B was investigated further in 2001 and found to be part of a more elaborate drainage system, consisting of a natural rock/schist-cut gully which appears to have functioned by taking rain and groundwater away from the buildings on the eastern side of the monastic complex. It is thought that the water would have flowed in a southerly direction along the gully into a covered drain c. 2m east of the cell entrance. A small leacht or prayer station lay between the drain and the cell entrance, the side wall of the drain forming the back wall of the leacht. The water would then have flowed into the open trough, which may have functioned also as a water collection area, probably for use in cooking inside Cell B, the refectory. The water then flowed into what is thought to be a sump/cistern. This has not yet been excavated and therefore its function remains somewhat ambiguous. A feeder channel east of the main gully also formed part of the drainage system. The channel was formed by a lintelled opening cut into the base of the steep slope east of Cell B and would have provided an outlet for underground water running off the high ground east of the monastery. The outlet from the feeder channel was excavated but more work needs to be carried out around the mouth and lintelled opening of the channel.

North of Cell B, work continued on what had previously been thought to be a covered passage linking the perambulatory around the church with Cell B. At the earliest levels excavated, a fully extended skeleton lay in a shallow unmarked grave. The feet of the skeleton had been cut by a later stone-lined grave; no body was uncovered. It is now thought that the area previously referred to as a ‘covered passage’ was, or was possibly reused as, a prayer station or shrine at the head of the burial. Further excavation remains to be carried out in this area.

The walls of Cell B were fully exposed on the north, south and eastern sides. A deliberate packing of natural schist abutted the foundations and functioned as a protective weatherproofing layer around the base and particularly on the northern side, around the face of the cell wall.

Thirty-five small finds were recovered, the largest assemblage being comprised of corroded fragments of iron. A single intact decorated cross-slab was uncovered a short distance from the leacht outside the entrance to Cell B.

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