2002:0698 - WOODSIDE, Dublin

During monitoring of topsoil-stripping for a large-scale housing development near Stepaside, Co. Dublin, several features of archaeological significance were revealed. These were three separate areas of activity, not associated with each other. Two of the areas, B and C, were within a field in which a possible ringfort is situated (SMR 22:69). In addition, the possible route of the Pale ditch as outlined by Goorik Dehaene in 2001 in an unpublished cultural heritage report runs along the southern field boundary of the site, close to Area C.

In Area A, at the highest point on a hill, a single subcircular pit was identified, containing charcoal-enriched material and metalworking waste. This feature, cut into the natural subsoil, with very steep sides and a concave base, measured 0.84m east–west by 0.73m and was 0.22m deep. It contained three fills: a primary fill of cream/brown sandy clay; a secondary fill of dark grey, charcoal-enriched, silty clay; and an upper fill of loose, mid-brown, sandy silt. The primary and secondary fills contained charcoal, burnt and unburnt bone, and metalworking waste, including a possible furnace base and a copper-alloy disc. The upper fill, which also had charcoal flecks, contained a single sherd of post-medieval pottery. This fill was similar to topsoil and is likely to be the result of machine disturbance at ground level. After conservation of the copper-alloy disc, it was suggested that it may be a button or the cap of a weaving bobbin, of late medieval date (A. Kennedy, pers. comm.).

In Area B a complex of features was revealed on the brow of a steep, south-facing hill. They were identified as a series of post-holes with internal charcoal deposits. Further investigation revealed a small, sub-oval hut structure with a south-facing entrance, supported both internally and externally by post-holes cut into the natural subsoil. Internally, the structure measured 5m north–south by 4m.

Eleven external post-holes supported the structure, 0.2m in average diameter. In addition, there were two post-pits, 0.4m in average diameter, and five internal post-holes, 0.2m in average diameter. A single exterior post-pit was also noted, which may have supported a small exterior porch or annexe.

Internally, two distinct deposits of charcoal-enriched material were evident: a large, subrectangular deposit and a smaller, sub-oval deposit. Despite first impressions that a horizontal granite slab visible at the centre of the larger deposit may have been a flagstone, no evidence of a hearth was present. Indeed, the only indication of in situ burning was a very small scorched patch of oxidised natural subsoil underlying a larger deposit of charcoal-enriched material toward the back of the hut structure.

The location of a post-hole beneath the larger deposit of burnt material may indicate that this deposit represents a later phase of activity. It may also suggest that traces of an internal hearth, if any, were removed through clearance and reuse when later cuts were dug. Later again, both deposits of charcoal-enriched material had been cut by a subrectangular shallow pit containing animal bone, representing a subsequent phase of activity. Large boulders of granite bedrock are abundant in this area, although it became clear that the granite identified in the centre of the structure was not bedrock. The granite slab had been placed horizontally and supported beneath by smaller stones to form a flat platform-type feature, perhaps for use as a work surface.

No datable artefacts were found during excavation of these features. One flint waste flake and a second, unworked piece of flint were found.

The similarities between the Woodside house and that of confirmed Bronze Age huts are unquestionable (Hut 1, Curraghatoor, Co. Tipperary, Doody 1987; Cullyhanna Lough, Co. Armagh, Hut 3 and Clonfinlough, Fota Island, Co. Cork, Doody 2000). Timber U-shaped or oval huts with a single row of external posts and no footing trench are the second-commonest house type of the Bronze Age period (Doody 2000, 137). It has been estimated that huts roofed with thatch would require post supports of timbers measuring up to 0.3m in diameter (Doody 2000, 144). Central post-holes would aid in the support of the roof, and the Woodside hut seems to fit this category of structure. Interestingly, many excavated Bronze Age houses are practically devoid of internal features, and only 31% show evidence of internal hearths.

Situated at the base of a steep hill, Area C was adjacent to a stream and a well-built, granite, drystone wall. During monitoring, several features were exposed, including a stone structure overlying two linear features, several areas of burning, pits, ditches and a possible relict field boundary. Excavation in this area was limited to revealing the nature and extent of the features, as the site was to be artificially raised to at least 1m above the archaeological layer. After investigation of the features, the archaeology was preserved in situ using a geotextile and fine gravel overlay.

An earlier phase of activity comprised two parallel linear features oriented east–west and traced for a distance of 6m and 1.7m. These features, 1.5m wide, were cut into the natural subsoil. Both contained evidence of burning within the cuts. In addition, several deposits of burnt material were noted between these two linear features, and to the west several post-holes and a larger deposit of charcoal-enriched material were recorded. It was not clear during the limited excavations that took place whether the features in this earlier phase of activity were contemporaneous.

A later phase of activity was represented by a three-sided, subrectangular, granite stone structure. During the construction of the structure, the earlier linear features had been reused as foundation cuts. The eastern and western edges of the structure showed no evidence of a foundation cut. Along the western side the stones sat directly on mid-brown silt, typical of the hill-wash recorded from this area during excavation. Three drainage ditches surrounded the structure on the northern, western and southern sides. An 18th-century date is suggested for the structure and associated features (a refuse pit and drainage ditches). This is based on the considerable quantities of pottery found in and around the features. The reuse of the two linear features as foundations for the structure suggests that they remained clearly evident before construction and therefore are also likely to date from post-medieval times.

A large ditch, oriented south-east/north-west, was identified to the east of Area C. It ran into the southern field boundary but could not be traced beyond the modern sewer line, which cut through it to the north. At the point through which a section was dug, the cut of the ditch was up to 8m wide and 1.4m deep, with gently sloped sides and a flattened base. The charcoal band, which had drawn attention to the ditch initially, formed a thick, charcoal-enriched, silty clay fill that stretched across the entire width of the ditch. The ditch fills comprised varying bands of silty clay and sandy silts, typically the result of hill-wash, flooding and natural backfills.

References
Doody, M. 1987 Later Bronze Age huts at Curraghatoor, Co. Tipperary. In R.M. Cleary, M.F. Hurley and E.A. Twohig (eds), Archaeological excavations on the Cork–Dublin gas pipeline (1981–82), 36–42. Cork.
Doody, M. 2000 Bronze Age houses in Ireland. In A. Desmond, G. Johnson, M. McCarthy, J. Sheehan and E. Shee Twohig (eds), New agendas in Irish prehistory, 135–59. Bray.

32 Fitzwilliam Place, Dublin 2