2002:1567 - DERRYARKIN, Offaly

Monitoring was carried out in November 2002 of mechanical peat removal before the construction of the new cement-block factory in Derryarkin Bog, Co. Offaly. The development area, which measured 100m by 150m, was considered to be archaeologically sensitive because of its location within a raised bog.

The original strategy had been to monitor all mechanical peat removal on the site, in an area measuring 100m by 180m. This part of the site had previously been forested. Approximately one-third of the trees had been removed using a bulldozer. There was very little peat remaining above the subsoil over the entire development area, and the removal of the trees had resulted in very disturbed ground. Because the area had been forested, it was recognised that it would be very difficult to identify any archaeological sites within this peat. The underlying subsoil was therefore targeted for archaeological inspection to investigate the potential for pre-bog activity. The heavy plant machinery in use was not conducive to the complete topsoil-stripping of the site. In the central section of the site the ground had also been disturbed, as some oak trees had been extracted for replanting. It was decided that placing linear trenches across the site at 15m intervals would help to determine whether there were any features of archaeological interest within the boundaries of the site without causing further ground disturbance. Six trenches, oriented north-east/south-west, were opened across the site. The peat was mechanically removed, exposing the pre-bog marl and gravel layers. The depth of the peat and marl varied, but their composition remained similar throughout the site. The peat closest to the bog surface was quite disturbed by tree-root systems and their removal. The glacially deposited gravel was, by now, exposed in sections across the site. No archaeological features were identified.

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