County: Cork Site name: MITCHELSTOWN
Sites and Monuments Record No.: CO019-170 Licence number: 04E1071, A012/003
Author: Bruce Sutton, Eachtra Archaeological Projects
Site type: Burnt mound
Period/Dating: Prehistoric (12700 BC-AD 400)
ITM: E 580139m, N 613333m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.271330, -8.290997
Archaeological works were undertaken on behalf of Cork County Council along the route of the N8 Mitchelstown relief road, which involves the construction of 4.5km of the N8 from Cloonlough, south of Mitchelstown, to the junction of the R513 and the N8, north of Mitchelstown. In the course of testing a fulacht fiadh was recorded in Mitchelstown. Licence 04E1071 was initially granted to excavate the site. However, with the introduction of the National Monuments (Amendment) Act in the summer of 2004, the remaining archaeological investigations took place under ministerial direction. The excavation of the fulacht fiadh was allocated the works number A012/003.
The site was located in low-lying ground, adjacent to the Gradoge River. The burnt mound uncovered on this site had been heavily truncated by what appeared to be an old backfilled streambed. The mound remained as a thin strip of material measuring 9.5m by 0.25m. Two small pits were located under the mound material. No trough was recorded. A small pit, 0.6m by 0.5m by 0.3m deep, was excavated c. 12m to the north-west of the mound. Located within this pit were the remains of three prehistoric pottery vessels. The most substantial and intact of these was a small polypod bowl with three small feet and two side handles. This was placed between a small round-bottomed vessel to the north and half of what appeared to be a deliberately broken flat-bottomed vessel to the south. All three were placed upon two flat stones within the base of the cut.
Ballycurreen Industrial Estate, Kinsale Road, Cork
