2004:1880 - PRIESTSNEWTOWN (GSAR Sites 1 and 2), Wicklow

Site 1 was exposed towards the southern end of the ‘outfall’ corridor, extending between Chainage 1000 of the GSAR and the bank of the Kilpedder Stream. It consisted of a spread of dark-grey silty clay containing many heat-shattered sandstone fragments and measuring 6m (east-west) by 3m. The site was interpreted as the levelled remains of a Bronze Age ‘burnt mound’ or fulacht fiadh.

Site 2 was located c. 17m west of Site 1 and c. 11m north of the edge of Kilpedder Stream. It was a similar spread of dark-grey/blackish silty clay with dense fire-cracked sandstone fragments and measuring c. 6m (east-west) by c. 3.5m, which appeared to represent the remains of an ancient cooking site or fulacht fiadh.

Because Sites 1 and 2 were located along a drainage pipe route and not within the GSAR corridor itself, the possibility existed that excavation of the sites might be avoided if the pipe could be constructed without impacting on the exposed remains. Trenching and pipelaying work went ahead on 17 February. The direction of trenching was from east to west and the trench skirted the edge of Site 1 without disturbing any archaeological material. However, at a point roughly 3m east of the identified edge of Site 2, the remains of a pit in the subsoil were exposed in the pipe trench. This feature measured c. 2m long (east-west) by c. 0.9m wide, with a surviving depth of up to 0.2m. The infill consisted of dark-grey charcoal-enriched clay containing numerous fragments of heat-shattered sandstone fragments. Apart from this feature, the line of the pipe trench edged past Site 2 and reached the bank of the Kilpedder Stream without exposing any archaeological material. Sites 1 and 2 were subsequently covered over and the ground reinstated.