2002:0026 - MULLAGHBUOY, Antrim

Monitoring of topsoil-stripping was carried out in November and December 2001 as part of planning requirements related to the development of the Ranch Caravan Park at 91–93 Mullaghbuoy Road, Mullaghbuoy, Co. Antrim (Excavations 2001, No. 12). The proposed development site is on the peninsula of Islandmagee, Co. Antrim. The development area consists of a long parcel of land oriented north-east/south-west, which had been developed into a caravan and camping site with small gravelled access lanes and various small buildings such as toilet and shower blocks. The site is bounded on all sides by agricultural land except to the south-west, where access to the site is through a private residence.

Two areas of potential were identified during monitoring: Area 1, a small area of activity within the northern, lower reaches of the site; and Area 2, a much larger area within which the possible remains of a large rectangular structure survived, near the top of the north-east-facing slope of the development.

Excavation was carried out over four to five weeks during August and September 2002, confirming the existence of a large rectangular house structure of probable Neolithic date and of at least two phases of activity. The smaller site, to the north, appeared to represent the remains of activity peripheral to that upslope.

Area 1: pits and post-holes
Area 1 was near the base of the north-facing slope of the development area and consisted of a curvilinear gully and a series of scattered pits. The gully curved north–south, was situated at the north-west end of this area and was 4.5m long, 1m wide and 0.1–0.16m deep. Four shallow, circular, pit-like features extended southward from this gully, c. 0.55–0.75m in diameter and 0.06–0.12m deep . Each was filled by dark brown to black silty clays, which contained varying quantities of heat-shattered stone. A substantial oval pit was excavated at the southernmost portion of this area. It measured 1.75m by 1.25m and was 0.5m deep. It had been filled mainly by a charcoal-rich clay, which contained numerous stones, some of which appeared to have been burnt. It is possible that this feature represents a rubbish pit or perhaps the remains of a cooking area in conjunction with other features. All of these features had been cut into a layer of hill-wash material, 0.25m thick, which also contained small fragments of poorly preserved pottery.

Area 2: rectangular house structure
The remains of the large rectangular structure were fully exposed. It extended north-north-east/south-south-west downslope from near the top of the development site, facing out toward the sea. It was 23m long and 5–6m wide, consisting of a long foundation slot ranging from c. 0.3m to 1m wide and from c. 0.2m to 0.5m deep. Excavation of the slot revealed that it had been filled by a tight packing of large stones measuring 0.25–0.5m, between which the remains of upright support posts were uncovered. A substantial quantity of pottery and flint was also recovered from the fills of the wall slot. During excavation of the slot-trench it also became apparent that there were at least two phases of house construction.

The first phase involved the construction of a comparatively small rectangular structure that comprised the southern one-third of the overall structural remains. This measured c. 9m by c. 5m externally, with a substantial continuous wall slot on average c. 0.7m wide and c. 0.4m deep, and was box shaped in section. Again, a packing of sizeable stones was placed within the slot, with the remains of upright posts in the form of discrete concen-trations of charcoal within the packing. The remainder of the fill of the slot consisted of a compact deposit of orange redeposited clay subsoil, into which the stones were packed, over which was a deposit of compact, dark brown/black, charcoal-rich clay, 0.1–0.2m thick. There was no clear evidence of any entrance to the house as there was no gap along the wall slot, suggesting perhaps that the entrance to the structure was raised above ground level, as perhaps was the floor, given that only two internal features were uncovered during excavation. A concentration of primary/secondary flint debitage, along with more than one type of pottery, was recovered from the fill of the slot within its southern end, close to the south-east corner. This concentration of habitation and industrial artefacts may suggest that the entrance was within this area.

The two internal features were two large central post-holes spanning the width of the structure, each c. 0.4m in diameter and 0.2–0.3m deep. Two other post-holes were placed in alignment with these two internal features, within the outer eastern and western edges of the house slot. This alignment of four post-holes has been interpreted as the remains of the timber supports for the roof of the house.

The second phase of construction was the addition of an ancillary structure onto the northern end of the first house. This second structure was constructed in a very similar fashion to the first, consisting again of a long subsoil-cut slot filled with a tight packing of stones, with evidence of upright posts placed at intervals along the slot. It was, however, much more substantial, c. 14m long and 7m wide, with an apsidal northern end. A small gap of c. 0.35m was found within the north-west portion of the slot and may be the remains of a small entranceway into this part of the house. This secondary structure did not entirely match the orientation of the first, being placed along a north–south axis in comparison to the north-north-east/south-south-west axis of the smaller structure.

A number of features were excavated within the structure, concentrated in its northern half. Many of these were very shallow and insubstantial, possibly owing to heavy truncation in the past; however, their placing along the inside of the slot suggests that they may be the remains of internal support post-holes.

Discussion
The remains uncovered at Mullaghbuoy represent a substantial house structure and peripheral activity. Initial identification of the pottery recovered from the slot of the house structure suggests that it is Neolithic. The shape and size of the structure share similarities with other Neolithic houses excavated throughout Ireland and indeed with those excavated during other development work in Islandmagee.

Further analysis of the pottery remains and results of radiocarbon dating will add to the interpretation of this site.

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