County: Wexford Site name: FERNS
Sites and Monuments Record No.: SMR 15:3 Licence number: 01E1208
Author: Maurice F. Hurley
Site type: Burnt spread
Period/Dating: Undetermined
ITM: E 701839m, N 649808m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.590000, -6.497000
It is proposed to develop new houses on a greenfield site at the east end of Ferns, Co. Wexford. The site fronts onto the N11 (Enniscorthy to Gorey) road and is adjacent to the ‘Historic Town’ of Ferns. A number of historic sites lie near the proposed development site and c. 180m of the site lies within the zone of archaeological potential as defined by the Urban Archaeological Survey.
Ferns was the ancient capital of the kingdom of Uí Cheinnselaig. Subsequently, it was to become the Christian centre of the province of Leinster and the focal point and power centre for the kings of Leinster. A monastery is said to have been founded c. AD 600 by St Mogue (Áedán), who is also credited with the founding of monasteries at Beggerin, Adamstown and Taghmon, all in County Wexford (Culleton 1999, 18). This was a period of many changes in the political situation in County Wexford, and the subsequent struggle for control of the monastery at Ferns mirrors the fluctuating political conditions in Ireland in the later 1st millennium. The see of Ferns was founded in AD 598, with St Mogue as its first bishop (O’Donovan 1840, I, 54).
The testing revealed an area of charcoal immediately to the south of the N11 road. No finds that could provide evidence for the dating of this material were obtained. Samples of charcoal were taken for radiocarbon dating. In the light of its proximity to a known site of historic importance, the Early Christian monastery site of St Aedan’s, it is likely that this charcoal relates to historic settlement/industry in the area. Elsewhere on the site, both within and outside the zone of archaeological potential, no further remains of potential archaeological significance were recorded.
References
Culleton, E. 1999 Celtic and Early Christian Wexford. Dublin.
O’ Donovan, J. 1840 Letters containing information relative to the antiquities of Co. Wexford collected during the progress of the Ordnance Survey in 1840 (2 vols). Compiled by M. O’Flanagan (1933). Bray.
312 Bruach na Laoi, Union Quay, Cork
