2003:523 - DUBLIN: Donore Avenue, Dublin

Test excavation of a site at the White Swan Business Centre, Donore Avenue, Dublin 8, was undertaken on 19 June 2003. No medieval features were uncovered on this site, which is that of Donore Castle. The development also entailed renovation of a shed built onto a historic industrial structure. The concrete floor of the shed was broken and excavation was undertaken with a mini-digger fitted with a grading bucket.

The trench measured 0.8m in width and was dug to the level of solid masonry, where this was encountered. At the north end of the trench, a stone-faced foundation which measured 0.88m in width was uncovered; this corresponded with a kink in the steam-engine-house wall and relates to an earlier building on the site, probably a boiler house. The wall extended east–west, and was located at a distance of 1.8m from the north wall of the shed. Elsewhere, the deposits consisted of loose concrete rubble and red brick to a depth of 1.3m below present ground level.

Towards the central part of the trench, the solid brick culvert arch of the Poddle was encountered. A slab of limestone was lifted off to reveal the river beneath.

The presence of the brick arch was confirmed in the trench at the south end. The arch was not broken and appears to be in good condition.

The renovation will not impact on these features.