County: Meath Site name: CALLIAGHSTOWN
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 04E1052
Author: Gill Mc Loughlin, Irish Archaeological Consultancy Ltd, 8 Dungar Terrace, Dœn Laoghaire, Co. Dublin.
Site type: Burnt mounds, ditch, pits
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 671800m, N 774539m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.715591, -6.912258
Testing was carried out in advance of the planned M3 Clonee-North of Kells road scheme, Co. Meath, on the Kells-North of Kells section (Contract 5) between July and December 2004. This section of the scheme is 10.2km long from Calliaghstown, south-west of Kells, to Derver, north-west of Kells. The testing methodology consisted of a centre-line trench and offsets every 20m. Anomalies identified in the geophysical survey were also tested. The work was carried out on behalf of the Meath County Council National Roads Development Office and the National Roads Authority.
Testing area 1 is between Chainages 80000 and 81100 and 6856m2 of the total 89,194m2 within this area was tested, providing a testing coverage of 7.7%. Testing took place on seven days between 23 August and 1 December 2004.
Three sites designated Calliaghstown 1-3 were identified. Calliaghstown 1 consisted of a ditch containing burnt-mound material and associated linear features. These features may be agricultural ditches or they could be part of an enclosure. Pits containing burnt-mound material were also uncovered close to a stream and may indicate the presence of a burnt mound in this area, perhaps outside the road-take.
Calliaghstown 2 consisted of two spreads of burnt-mound material measuring 7.5m by 7.5m and 9m by 6m, which are situated overlooking a low boggy area. An unstratified barbed and tanged flint arrowhead found close to Sites 2a and 2b is an indication of Early Bronze Age activity in this area.
Calliaghstown 3 consisted of an oval pit of possible archaeological significance measuring 1.98m by 3.56m by 0.66m.
