County: Louth Site name: ASH WALK, ARDEE
Sites and Monuments Record No.: SMR 17:101, 17:106 Licence number: 05E0055
Author: Stuart D. Elder and Nikolah Gilligan, The Archaeology Company, Birr Technology Centre, Mill Island, Birr, Co. Offaly.
Site type: Urban medieval
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 692893m, N 780922m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.769602, -6.590894
Pre-development testing was carried out at a proposed development site in Ash Walk, Ardee, Co. Louth, in May 2005. The site, which is located within the zone of archaeological potential for Ardee, is situated within the immediate vicinity of the site of Ash Walk Gate (SMR 17:106), one of the six medieval gates constructed as part of the town defences in the 14th and 15th centuries.
Seven trenches were excavated in the area of investigation, five within the footprint of the proposed unit and two within the footprint of the proposed car-parking spaces. Seven features were discovered. Four were linear cuts and are related to post-medieval practices in Ardee. F5 and F7 were circular deposits; the former was found to contain animal bones and the latter contained no diagnostic material within the fill. These are not of archaeological significance. F6 was a shallow deposit with sherds of medieval pottery and animal bones.
