2004:0892 - KILKENNY, Kilkenny

The route of the broadband cable forms a loop west of the River Nore starting at the Parade end of High Street and circling the city centre. The cables were picked up on the east side of the river, where the cable already extended across the river at Green's Bridge (a separate contract) and ultimately returned to the start via John's Bridge and Rose Inn Street. The cable trenches were on average 0.4m wide, with a maximum depth of 0.8m. The cables extend between connection chambers. The standard chamber measured 1.2m by 0.6m, with a maximum depth of 1.15m.

Wherever possible, the line of the trench followed existing services, such as telephone and electricity lines. The line of disused culverts was availed of on several occasions. Considering the antiquity of the city, relatively little was disturbed, which is to be commended. What was revealed were some disturbed strata in High Street, which contained some late medieval pottery and some charcoal. Also of great interest was a bridge found behind the Municipal Library. It crossed the end of Back Lane, which leads from the west into the carpark behind the library. Here, in the northern face of the chamber, was exposed a stone archway. Examination of the structure expanded from the chamber along the cable trench to the north-west, revealing cut limestone blocks bonded with a lime-rich mortar, forming the span of a small bridge. The width of the exposed feature was 4.3m east-west. The uppermost 0.5m of material abutting the small bridge was very modern and it would appear to have been filled in in the early modern period, as it included lumps of concrete. Below this, a maximum of 0.3m of humic dark-brown silt, quite dry, was exposed. It yielded an example of clay-pipe stem and a sherd of brown ware, or glazed red earthenware. The likely date of the fill is 17th century or later. 'The Lake', the natural flood-plain of the Nore, would have provided a reliable source of water to the narrow stream feeding the mills around Magdalen Castle (the agricultural area of Kilkenny Castle proper). The bridge is not evident in the map of Kilkenny by Sam Byron, dated to 1780, but can be clearly seen in a map titled 'Kilkenny circa 1842' reprinted in the Irish Historic Towns Atlas.

The surfaces of several walls were exposed, some later, such as those probably associated with rebuilding of John's Bridge in Canal Square, and others earlier, found in the grounds of Evans Home. This part of the site had been specifically associated with a horse barrack, built to support the infantry barrack, constructed in 1780. A possibly medieval wall was exposed, but not damaged, in Barrack Lane, which may pertain to earlier boundaries or outbuildings of John's Priory.

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