County: Donegal Site name: TORY ISLAND
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 01E0511
Author: Audrey Gahan, ADS Ltd.
Site type: Burnt spread
Period/Dating: Prehistoric (12700 BC-AD 400)
ITM: E 585680m, N 946391m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 55.264440, -8.225293
No archaeological conditions had been placed on the development of a primary-care centre with a surrounding perimeter wall overlooking the harbour, and works were under way in 2001 when ADS Ltd was contacted by the North-Western Health Board to inspect remains of a possible archaeological nature that had been identified. An initial inspection of the area indicated that coastal erosion had led to the exposure of an area of burning with associated deposits of beach-rolled pebbles and some heat-shattered stones.
On the basis of this, a further assessment was undertaken (Excavations 2001, No. 297). Further work carried out on the site in early 2002 revealed that the layer noted in 2001 extended for a maximum distance of 15m north–south by 5m, where it was truncated owing to coastal erosion. Unfortunately, the archaeological horizon could not be associated with any features or structure, as it is probable that construction of the care centre, which was already under way when the assessment took place, would have removed any.
Unit 48, Westlink Enterprise Centre, 30–50 Distillery Street, Belfast BT12 5BJ
