County: Westmeath Site name: NEWTOWN (3)
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 04E0691
Author: Paul Stevens, c/o Archaeological Consultancy Services Ltd.
Site type: Fulacht fia
Period/Dating: Prehistoric (12700 BC-AD 400)
ITM: E 644900m, N 750514m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.502705, -7.323204
Excavation of site Newtown 3 in Newtown townland, on the outskirts of Mullingar, was undertaken in May 2004 in advance of the proposed N52 Mullingar bypass. The site lay very close to Newtown 2 (No. 1769, Excavations 2004) and was discovered during testing of the road scheme by Rob O'Hara (No. 1755, Excavations 2004, 04E0249).
The natural topography of the site was an undulating landscape with boggy hollows and drumlins. The site was positioned midway down the east-facing slope overlooking a peat bog to the east and contained two phases of archaeological activity.
Phase 1 consisted of a burnt mound or fulacht fiadh consisting of a limestone-dominated mound of fire-cracked stone and charcoal-stained silt over a single trough, with parallel stake-holes at one end, two early informal hearths or fire-spots and a later stone-lined hearth pit with adjacent post-holes.
The trough, an irregular elongated oval shape in plan with concave unlined sides and an irregular sloping flat base, measuring 3.35m (northwest/south-east) by 1–1.7m in width and 0.65m in depth, contained two parallel post-holes in the northwestern walls. It was initially backfilled by a redeposited natural with a tiny chert artefact and animal-bone fragment and sealed by stony fills of charcoal-rich burnt-mound material (limestone 95%, sandstone 5%).
A stone-lined pit was revealed 5m south-west of the trough, cutting through the burnt mound though stratigraphically contemporary. This feature was oval, with a concave profile and flat base, 1.42m by 1.2m, and 0.6m in depth. It contained a primary fill of ash and cinders, lying on the base and mixed around a loosely arranged two-course limestone lining, and was backfilled by burnt-mound material. Two large post-holes, 0.5m in diameter and depth, adjoined the hearth pit to the north and west and appear to be contemporary. The function of these structural posts is unknown and appears unusual, considering the heat produced by the hearth; however, they might have formed part of a spit or held an item or vessel over the fire.
The burnt mound measured 16m (north-south) by 11m and 0.1–0.35m in depth and spread down the east-facing slope, mostly towards the boggy ground immediately outside the area of the road-take. It consisted of a composite accumulation of fire-cracked stone (predominantly limestone, 95%, and sandstone, 5%) with small amounts of animal bone and some chert debitage.
Phase 2 consisted of a number of post-medieval features: an undated linear stone-lined drain running along the contour of the slope north-east/south-west, a parallel drain and a series of parallel furrows cut perpendicular to the ditches.
21 Boyne Business Park, Greenhills, Drogheda, Co. Louth
