County: Dublin Site name: OLDCOURT: Ballycullen Road
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 03E0770
Author: Ellinor Larsson, c/o Arch-Tech Ltd.
Site type: Pit
Period/Dating: Prehistoric (12700 BC-AD 400)
ITM: E 711322m, N 726998m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.281600, -6.330627
Five features of potential archaeological significance were identified in a residential development at Ballycullen in May 2003 during a programme of monitoring of topsoil-stripping (No. 649, Excavations 2003, 02E0190 ext., Phase 6). The solitary features were distributed with no apparent pattern over an area of gently sloping ground measuring 25m north-west by 10m. They were labelled A to E and provisionally identified as pits of possible prehistoric date, and were located between 5 and 30m to the south of Ballycullen Site 2, a fulacht fiadh, excavated in September 2003 (Excavations 2002, No. 640, 02E1374).
Feature A consisted of a small sub-circular cut which contained a single fill with much charcoal. Feature B was a small sub-circular pit with a charcoal-rich fill containing occasional small burnt stones. Feature C measured 2m by 0.6m north-west/southeast and consisted of an irregular spread of black charcoal-stained silt with burnt-stone material, closely resembling the material excavated at the nearby fulacht fiadh (Ballycullen Site 2). Features D and E were confirmed to be the result of root action and of non-archaeological origin. No finds were identified within the limits of the excavation, although three pieces of struck flint were found near Feature A during monitoring of topsoil-stripping. The features can be interpreted as possibly associated with Site 2, due to their location and the burnt-stone material included in their fills.
The preliminary findings of the excavation are not sufficient to date and specify the function of the three features; analysis of the samples is ongoing.
32 Fitzwilliam Place, Dublin 2
