County: Limerick Site name: RIVERS, ANNACOTTY
Sites and Monuments Record No.: SMR 6:63 Licence number: 05E1251
Author: Cia McConway and Niall Gregory, Archaeological Development Services Ltd, Windsor House, 11 Fairview Strand, Fairview, Dublin 3.
Site type: possible enclosure
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 563632m, N 657565m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.668043, -8.537676
Test excavation was carried out within a greenfield area adjacent to and south of the N7 Limerick–Dublin road. The proposed development consists of a retail scheme measuring 7761m2 of gross floor area. The site retains a monument along its north-western boundary, identified by aerial photography. It is possible that it had previously been impacted upon by the construction of the roundabout at the north-west corner of the site.
The excavation achieved depths of up to 0.6m, consistent with the surface of the underlying, naturally occurring, subsoil. No materials or artefacts were encountered in the course of testing that could be absolutely related to the monument. However, six individual features were identified as being archaeological or retaining archaeological potential.
Three possible ditches/field boundaries retain the potential for some antiquity, since available cartographic data does not appear to indicate their presence. F1 is consistent with fulacht fiadh structures. Its burnt-stone material, in particular sandstone, further emphasises this hypothesis. F2 is consistent with a kiln structure; its apparent lack of artefactual material may indicate a corn-drying kiln. Similar to F1, its location would suggest possible association with the SMR site. When both F1 and F2 are considered in their setting and proximity to 6:63, this provides for strong indications of a site complex with multiple outlying activities. C7 further emphasises this. Its material is consistent with the residue of redug pits associated with fulachta fiadh.
