County: Tipperary Site name: Site 8, Monadreela
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 03E0379
Author: Neil O'Flanagan, 3 Manor Street, Stoneybatter, Dublin 7.
Site type: Ditches, linear features, medieval enclosures, pits and post-holes
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 609602m, N 641914m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.528507, -7.858485
This site on the N8 Cashel Bypass and N74 Link Road scheme had been tested in 2002 by Anne Marie Lennon (Excavations 2002, No. 1745, 02E0375). No archaeological features were identified but, due to the proximity of definite archaeological features (No. 1783 below, Site 9), additional testing was undertaken in March 2003.
Three trenches (in total 158m2) were excavated between Chainages 6730 and 6750. Two north-south-oriented ditches and an east-west-oriented ditch were identified. One ditch contained five distinct fills, some containing substantial quantities of charcoal. These features did not appear to relate to any specific settlement evidence and their function was unclear.
Full resolution of the site followed. This work confirmed that the ditch features formed the northernmost parts of the rectangular medieval enclosures identified on adjacent Site 9. A number of anomalous pits and post-holes were also investigated; samples from some of these features will be used for radiocarbon dating.
