County: Donegal Site name: BAYLET (1)
Sites and Monuments Record No.: DG038-052---- Licence number: 02E0468 ext.
Author: Peter C. Woodman and N.J. Milner
Site type: Midden
Period/Dating: Mesolithic (8000 BC-4001 BC)
ITM: E 634015m, N 922708m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 55.050709, -7.467697
The 2002 rescue excavations at Baylet 1 had concentrated on opening an area immediately behind the escarpment on whose slope Brian Mc Naught had noted the remnants of a shell midden. This flat area, an extension to Trench 3, was found to have been heavily disturbed by rabbit burrows. However, it was noted that the smaller Trench 1, opened some 5m to the west, seemed to contain deposits that were more intact. Therefore, in 2003 a 2m by 1m trench was placed on the lip of the escarpment and exposed the following sequence. Topsoil covered Layer 2, a layer of comminuted shells that was up to 0.2m thick. This layer contained a sherd of what would appear to be Western Neolithic pottery. Below was Layer 3, a thin layer of shells dominated by oysters. This was generally 0.1m thick but towards the north and upslope was even thinner. It contained a high concentration of fish bones. Previous work in this area and 14C dates had indicated that this layer dated to the later stages of the Late Mesolithic. No trace of the underlying Mesolithic occupation level was found in this small trench.
The last remnants of the shell midden have been fenced off to allow the area to stabilise and to give some protection to the site.
Department of Archaeology, University College Cork and Department of Archaeology, University of Newcastle
