County: Dublin Site name: BALROTHERY: St Peter’s Church
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 02E1316
Author: Donald Murphy, ACS Ltd.
Site type: Church and Graveyard
Period/Dating: Medieval (AD 400-AD 1600)
ITM: E 720166m, N 763122m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.604150, -6.184292
Five areas were opened within a proposed cemetery extension on a green area that sloped slightly to the north beside St Peter’s Church. The assessment revealed that the site had been partially excavated or reduced some years ago and been backfilled with redeposited, dark brown clay. The site was then levelled and landscaped. The dark brown clay was clearly disturbed material and contained a large number of post-medieval/modern pottery fragments. However, three fragments of souterrain ware and a flint end scraper were recovered, suggesting that some archaeological features had been present on the site but were destroyed during the excavation of the hill. The only intact area of the hill was exposed in Area Two, where three fragmentary burials were uncovered beneath the sod and topsoil.
The proposal to extend the graveyard into this area would clearly have an impact on the existing burials. Full excavation before development, or avoidance of the burials by means of a buffer zone, was recommended.
Unit 21, Boyne Business Park, Greenhills, Drogheda, Co. Louth
