2002:1090 - BALLINGAYROUR (BGE 3/77/26), Limerick

This site was examined as part of Bord Gáis Éireann’s Pipeline to the West. A small spread of burnt material was excavated on fairly flat pastureland immediately adjacent to a small stream. The spread measured 3m north–south (parallel to the stream) by 2m and was no more than 0.1m deep. The deposit was a mixed brown and grey, silty clay with a large component of burnt and cracked stone, almost entirely sandstone, and a moderate amount of charcoal. Although a small amount of charcoal was recovered from a soil sample, it is insufficient for radiocarbon analysis.

Given the absence of artefactual material or radiocarbon samples, it seems unlikely that any date will be assigned to this isolated deposit. The appearance of the material, with the burnt stone and charcoal component, is similar to that of a burnt spread, or fulacht fiadh, and the proximity of a water source fits this interpretation. No trough or other cut feature was found, and the limited quantity of material may indicate substantial truncation, perhaps by rerouting of the natural stream to form a field boundary, or, alternatively, a short period of use for the site.