2002:0296 - CURRAHEEN 1, Cork

This site was discovered during archaeological testing of the N22 Ballincollig Bypass Scheme. It was in an area of slightly high ground in an otherwise flat, marshy environment. Two streams, both aligned east–west, were present to the south of the site, the nearer one less than 30m from its southern extent.

What the surrounding landscape may have looked like in antiquity can be glimpsed from some of the other excavations that were carried out in the areas of marshland affected by the development. Fulachta fiadh were plentiful within this area. Two sites interpreted as fulachta fiadh (Nos 295 and 299, Excavations 2002, 01E1217 and 02E1297), both situated within marshy land, were revealed to the south of the site, along with a high concentration of related features (No. 300, Excavations 2002, 02E1298) such as troughs, pits and small, shallow spreads of heat-shattered stone and charcoal. A third fulacht excavated by Donald Murphy, Carrigrohane 1 (Excavations 2001, No. 137, 01E0444), also within marsh, was situated c. 200m north of the site. The presence of these features suggests that this marshy environment may not have changed much over millennia.

The site measured 62m east–west by 44m; during the initial clean-back it became evident that the site would have covered a much larger area in antiquity but suffered considerable damage in more recent times. Much of its northern extent had been destroyed by a combination of quarrying activity and the construction of a now disused railway line. The site consisted of the remains of two enclosing ditches, adjacent to each other. Three features were present in the interior of the smaller ditch, while over 100 features were found north of the larger ditch. These features consisted mainly of post-holes, stake-holes and pits, with at least one hearth and two linear anomalies.

Occupational debris in the form of dark soils that occasionally contained pottery sherds, burnt bone and flint debitage filled a number of these features. Of the large number of stake-holes and post-holes present, one structure was clearly identifiable: a series of post-holes arranged in an oval.

Excavation of these deposits revealed two main phases of activity, the first in the Late Neolithic/Beaker period and the second in the early medieval period. Other features were of Iron Age and medieval dates.

Phase 1: Late Neolithic/Beaker
Pottery sherds accounted for most of the finds on the site, many of these being Beaker: 35 sherds of Beaker pottery, flint debitage, charcoal and charred seeds were recovered from a single pit, and charcoal from this pit was dated to 2580–2200 BC. A number of the sherds had a distinct S-shaped profile and the type of decoration usually associated with Beaker ware, while a small number of sherds were attractively decorated with a chevron motif. Two sherds of possible Neolithic pottery were also uncovered from secure contexts. Flint debitage and sherds of other prehistoric pottery were retrieved from a number of pits/post-holes, and a small convex scraper was recovered from a pit south of the smaller ditch. However, most of these finds were discovered relatively close together in an area north of the larger ditch. If the material evidence unearthed in this area of the site derived from a Beaker settlement, associated structures would be expected. A number of pits/post-holes and stake-holes were excavated but did not form a coherent plan. The scarcity of Beaker structures is a well-known phenomenon throughout much of Europe; it appears that many of the huts and houses of this period were of flimsy construction, leaving little or no trace in the archaeological record. Structures that have been recognised at a number of Beaker sites are usually oval or circular in plan.

Although a house with a roughly oval ground-plan, measuring slightly less than 8m east–west by 6m, was present, it appears that this structure was contemporary with the enclosing ditches.

Phase 2: early medieval (AD 400–800)
It is possible that other structures were present within the site, but no patterns were readily discernible. The house was positioned in the north-east quadrant of the site and appeared to be of post-and-wattle construction, with no separate roof structures. An oval arrangement of post-holes and an internal hearth, over 1m long, were all that remained of this structure. Twelve upright timber posts would have formed the structural frame of this building; these had an average diameter of 0.16m and a depth of 0.1m. The only find from within this house was a glass bead of possible early medieval date. A number of possible associated features such as post-holes, stake-holes and pits, indicative of settlement activity, were revealed to the south and west of this structure. Iron objects, slag, the point of a copper-alloy stick-pin, hazelnut shells and charred seeds were among the finds retrieved from these features. Most of these are possibly contemporary with the enclosure.

The enclosing ditches
The smaller of the two enclosures consisted of a narrow, V-shaped ditch with an average width of 1m, depth of 0.85m and diameter of c. 16m. No occupational layers were present in the interior, and, apart from two pieces of flint debitage, no finds were uncovered. The only features in the interior of this enclosure were three large post-holes; one of these produced a charcoal sample that, like the enclosing ditch, yielded an early medieval date (AD 570–670). A large natural bedrock outcrop was present north-west of these post-holes. The ditch may have originally encircled this outcrop, but, owing to modern disturbance, no trace of it was visible here.

The second enclosure ditch, east of the first, had an average width of 1.65m across the top and 1.5m across the base, which was relatively flat, and an average depth of 0.8m. Only the southern extent of this ditch remained; the northern part of it appeared to have been destroyed by modern disturbance. A section was excavated through the remainder of the north-western extent of the ditch. This yielded evidence that it had been truncated by quarrying activity. Much of this ditch was uniform in width and depth, with the exception of the north-western quadrant, which was narrower and deeper. The profile of this quadrant of the larger ditch was extremely similar to the profiles of the smaller ditch. It appeared that during the construction of the larger ditch this quadrant was dug deeper and narrower than the remainder of the ditch. It is interesting that, at the point where this change in morphology occurs, there are two post-holes on the outside of the ditch, 2.9m from and immediately east of the terminus of the smaller ditch. These two post-holes may be the remains of gateposts; therefore it appears that the smaller ditch had a south-eastern entrance, with the north-western quadrant of the larger ditch acting as its eastern boundary.

The change in morphology in this quadrant of the larger ditch may help in ascertaining the role and function of the smaller ditch. It is possible that the smaller ditch was an animal compound and that this quadrant of the larger ditch was dug in this way to prevent any animals contained within the smaller enclosure crossing over to the settlement area. With this evidence taken into account, as well as the fact that both ditches respected each others’ boundaries, it was concluded that they were contemporary with each other and that the smaller ditch was an annexe of the larger settlement enclosure. The radiocarbon dates received for both of these ditches confirm this.

No evidence of an internal bank for either ditch was evident. The dimensions of the larger ditch suggest that it did not have a defensive role but was more likely used to define the boundaries of the settlement. No artefacts were recovered from the smaller ditch, but a number of iron objects were present in the larger one. Owing to the acidic nature of the soils, no bone survived anywhere on-site.

With a large area of this site having been destroyed, it is difficult to determine both the exact number of structures that may once have been present and the number of people that may have occupied the site. It appears that most activity on this site took place during the early medieval period.

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