2005:1172 - DOWDSTOWN, Meath

The development is a spur from the Dunshaughlin sewerage scheme, which will run from Dunshaughlin to a new sewerage treatment plant at Castletown Tara into the headquarters of the Columban Fathers in Dalgan Park. This section of the development involves the installation of a gravity mains sewer that will run from an existing manhole near Dowdstown House to the plant at Castletown Tara. In doing so it will pass within 70m of the remains of a 12th-century church (SMR 31:7) that was established by Cistercians from St Mary’s Abbey in Dublin.
The entire site under discussion is situated within Dalgan Park. The land is gently undulating, sloping from north-east to south-west, and is currently in agricultural use as open pasture, divided by a demesne road. The River Skane runs close to the western side of the site, roughly parallel to the area examined. The ground level in the northern part of the area investigated is much higher – by c. 3–5m – than the remainder of the site.
The route tested was a revision of the first design; testing by Red Tobin of the original route, which passed within 40m of the church, indicated a considerable amount of medieval activity extending for 300m (Excavations 2004, No. 1236, 04E1499). In the course of the second phase of testing an area 10m by 400m in total was topsoil-stripped, hand-cleaned and examined.
However, it was decided in consultation with the National Monuments Service and Nicholas O’Dwyer, consulting engineers for Meath County Council, that full resolution of the archaeological remains in the area, which were confirmed to be even more extensive than previously thought, would be too costly. Therefore the proposed gravity mains sewer was abandoned and replaced with a rising main, which, as it was laid on the existing topsoil with a bank raised over it, would not require any further archaeological work.
This in turn meant that the archaeological remains would be preserved in situ. Therefore, the uncovered archaeology was covered with a layer of geotextile, with the more fragile or potentially important areas also being packed in sand. This was carried out from 26 October to 3 November 2005. It is anticipated that the activity uncovered here will be entered on the Sites and Monuments Record to ensure the future protection of the site. The limited programme of investigation has identified three separate areas of archaeological activity.
Prehistoric
A small concentration of pits and linear features in the northern part of the site indicates possible prehistoric activity. This is sited on a relatively level, well-drained platform that offered extensive views towards the south and along the valley of the River Skane. It consists of three small pits, two of which are subcircular in plan, with a diameter of 0.4m and 0.6m respectively, containing a small amount of carbonised material, though with no evidence for in situ burning. One of these pits produced a single struck fragment of flint that had been slightly heat-affected. The final pit is a small curvilinear feature that is 1.68m north–south, with both ends turning towards the west forming a loose C-shape. At its widest it measures 0.5m across. At its southern extent it contains a considerable amount of burnt material, including charcoal and burnt stone; it may also provide evidence of some in situ burning.
These three features are situated in the centre of at least eight north-east/south-west-oriented linear features that transect the proposed wayleave, continuing beyond the stripped area in both directions. Each runs roughly parallel to the other, spaced about 0.6–0.8m apart. They all measure 0.4–0.6m in width and contain an almost identical fill. They are clearly truncated at their northern extent by a post-medieval garden feature. Most importantly, it would seem that some of these are truncated by the aforementioned pits, suggesting an origin in early antiquity for all of this activity.
A short distance to the north of this a single linear feature measuring 1.8m wide runs across the stripped area on a rough east–west orientation. A test section showed it to be a steep-sided ditch that reached a maximum depth of 0.57m. It produced two pieces of struck flint, one of which is a flint tool struck from a larger core or flint pebble.
At the southern end of the site prehistoric activity consisting of a small concentration of pits c. 70m south of the demesne road was found. These pits were mainly irregular in plan, ranging from 0.8–1.3m in length and 0.6m in width; however, included are several subcircular features measuring up to 0.62m in diameter. The visible fills were comprised of dark-brownish/grey slightly sandy, clayey silt that contained occasional flecks of charcoal throughout the surface. These features were situated on a raised, fairly level platform that is situated just 25–30m from the River Skane. A Neolithic to Early Bronze Age date is suggested for all.
Medieval
The greatest concentration of activity lies c. 80m to the south of the prehistoric horizon in much lower-lying ground. It extends for at least 200m north–south over the area to the west and south-west of the 12th century Cistercian church.
The northernmost extent of this activity is marked by a substantial stone surface that runs in a rough east–west orientation across the stripped area, from drier sandy soil into a wetter area towards the western baulk of the site, before continuing downhill and beyond the limits of the wayleave. Its uncovered extent measures 10m by 12m, but it continues both upslope and downslope, suggesting the presence of associated activity in the surrounding area.
This horizon of activity includes a number of areas that would originally have been the location of standing structures, at least one of which would seem to have been a drystone construction. There is also a structure that burnt down. The fill of the latter contains a considerable amount of carbonised material throughout its extent and at several places clear evidence is visible of at least one episode of intense in situ burning within the confines of the actual cut. The nature and proportions of the feature suggest that it may originally have been a slot-trench forming part of a substantial structure. The area surrounding this feature contained a considerable amount of archaeological material – a mixture of spread material, pits, linear features and drains that had animal bone and/or medieval pottery on their surfaces. A nearby feature produced several larger pieces of metal slag and fluxed lining slag (FLS type slag).
One of the structures was located on a deliberately made platform, using waste material and old topsoil from the area. This forms a subrectangular raised platform that measures 7m by 6m and is demarcated by shallow, concave foundation trenches that have been tightly packed with the same material together with a high proportion (up to 60–70%) of angular pieces of limestone of average dimensions 0.2m by 0.16m by 0.12m. This platform also apparently continues upslope and beyond the limits of the wayleave.
The eastern part of the platform had been covered by a thin deposit of yellow sandy clay, perhaps to form a firmer base for any associated activities. All of the evidence for in situ burning on this platform was within this area of yellow sandy clay. In all, three areas of intensive burning were revealed, all within the eastern part of the structure. The area immediately surrounding this platform, to the south, south-west and in particular to the south-east, has a very high concentration of archaeological activity in the form of assorted pits and possible linear features and deposits, some of which provide further evidence of intense in situ burning. After cleaning, many of these produced fragments of sharp, unabraded green-glazed medieval pottery, together with Leinster cooking ware, suggesting contemporaneity with the nearby church, which at this point is c. 100m to the east.
Both of these structures are associated with intense in situ burning that would seem to be well in excess of domestic needs and so are much more likely to be associated with an industrial process.
Further to the south-east, c. 30m from the raised platform, there was a north-west/south-east-oriented spread of material that extended along the eastern baulk and beyond for 10m. At this point the remains of a rough wall are visible within the stripped area. This extends on a rough east–west orientation for 2m before turning at a 90° angle and continuing towards the north for a further 2m.
Approximately 8m to the south-east a second, much more elaborate, stone-built structure was revealed. This consisted of a standing wall structure, visible in the eastern baulk of the wayleave, that remains upright to a height of 0.6m and continues for 1.9m. The wall is running at a slight angle away from the line of the wayleave and so disappears at this point. A likely return for this wall enters the trench again a further 2.5m to the south-east, suggesting a north-west/south-east-oriented wall, 4.5m in length. This latter wall continues for 1.3m, running perpendicular to the first before being truncated by post-medieval agricultural activity. Both walls consist of up to four uneven courses of mixed stones, primarily limestone, which have been extensively ‘robbed out’ for use elsewhere. Some toolmarks are visible, but no fine dressing. No mortar or render is visible; instead it would appear that it was a clay-bonded wall.
Thus the surviving surface within this area is part of the interior of a structure built for industrial purposes. This is supported by a very deliberate feature uncovered immediately inside and to the west of the wall. This consisted of a low stone wall comprised of smaller sub-rounded and sub-angular flat stones, forming a drystone construction up to 2–3 courses high, reaching a maximum height of 0.12m. In addition, a considerable amount of stone tumble visible immediately behind this structure may suggest that it originally included another two or more courses. Together these form a distinct subrectangular south-east/north-west-oriented area, measuring 2m by 1.15m, that is open on its western side (although this may be the result of post-medieval disturbance). Interestingly, a smaller area, measuring c. 0.7m by 0.7m, has been further delineated at the southern extent of this small area. This too is constructed of flat pieces of limestone stacked on top of each other and would seem to have been the location of several episodes of in situ burning. The area in and around this smaller structure produced a considerable amount of metal artefacts and waste material, together with several pieces of metal and siliceous FLS slag material, suggesting that this area of the site may originally have been the location of a metalworking or production area. Furthermore, it would appear that this area represents only an unknown proportion of a larger industrial area, the remainder of which would have been located further uphill and to the east.
Again, the artefacts recovered during the initial clean-back include several sherds of medieval pottery, suggesting that this industrial area would have been in use at the same time as the Cistercian church, which at this point is located only 50–60m away to the east.
As the wayleave proceeds south-eastwards from this point, the concentration of archaeological activity decreases somewhat. Despite this, the area contains a considerable amount of activity in the form of a series of irregular pits and spreads of material, which contained animal bone and medieval pottery. This includes a series of large pits, with an average diameter of 1.2m, that extend beyond the south-western limits of the stripped area. Of particular interest is a grouping of three subrectangular cuts c. 40–50m to west of the medieval church. Two of these pits have almost identical dimensions of 1.6m by 0.6m and 1.6m by 0.5m. The third of these appears much larger (1.8m by 0.85m), but upon closer inspection would appear to represent three successive pits all cut into the same area. Each of these pits lies on a rough east-south-east/west-north-west orientation and may in fact represent the locations of some southern outlying inhumations associated with the Cistercian church.
Post-medieval activity
The area investigated also produced a considerable amount of post-medieval activity. The greater part of this consists of linear features representing either land drains or extinct field boundaries that criss-cross the landscape.
The area to the south of the demesne road in particular was heavily marked by an extensive post-medieval field system. These boundaries vary considerably in both form and dimensions, ranging from stone-packed field drains measuring 0.8m in width to much more substantial enclosing or boundary ditches measuring up to 3.2m in width. At the southernmost extent of the stripped area two of these more substantial linear features intersect, suggesting the presence of a post-medieval field system within the area. Several more features of similar form and dimensions were also uncovered throughout the area.
In addition to these, two further features of particular note were uncovered. One, a post-medieval quarry pit, was a large subcircular feature measuring up to 13m in diameter, although roughly only 50% of it is contained within the area included in this programme of testing. This large cut impacted directly on at least two separate medieval features on its northern side, both of which were very substantial pits measuring c. 2.5m across at their widest points, and produced medieval pottery from their respective surfaces. A limited investigation was undertaken of this feature, which indicates that it may be relatively shallow. Thus the remains of any additional earlier features that were truncated may be present beneath it.
A further 8m to the south-east a second very substantial feature was uncovered. A linear feature, 11m wide, extends across and beyond the full width of the stripped area on a rough north-east/south-west orientation. A limekiln is marked on the first-edition OS map of 1840, situated c. 100m to the west of the remains of the 12th–13th-century church, and was probably built in association with the construction of Dowdstown House. The limekiln structure would appear to be a short distance beyond the area investigated here. The linear feature would seem to represent the remains of an opencast quarry that was dug to source limestone as fuel for the kiln. The limestone bedrock here is only 1.2–1.4m below the current topsoil surface.
A gravel pathway was exposed in three different locations over a distance of 180m throughout the proposed wayleave and, as with the limekiln, is also referred to in the first-edition OS map. It occurs close to the limekiln, re-emerges further to the north-west, sealing the cobbled surface that marks the beginning of this archaeological horizon, and again further north. It was constructed in two courses consisting of a metalled surface of small sub-angular and sub-rounded pebbles with an average diameter of 50–60mm, which is then followed by a loose layer of natural ‘pea’ gravel. Artefacts recovered both from the surface and visible within its fabric include glass, coal, metal fragments and mid- to late 19th-century pottery. Dowdstown House was built in the late 18th century and the path may have been part of the elaborate gardens that were laid out by the owners of the house in the early 19th century.
The most striking feature of the remains uncovered is their nature and scale. It is clear that this activity extends well beyond the limits of the area investigated under this licence and licence 04E1149. The remains extend beyond the tested areas, both downslope and to the south and south-west but even more so upslope and to the east and north-east, with many features running beneath both baulks. The cobbled surface that marks the northern extent of this horizon has a distinct turn towards the north as it continues uphill, suggesting that it was laid as a path leading from a nearby settlement. The stone-built industrial structure detected to the south-east represents only a portion, not only of this particular structure but of a wider area of associated industrial activity.
This horizon of activity must represent a dedicated industrial area dating from the medieval period, probably in use at the same time as the Cistercian church that is situated c. 50m to the north-west. It probably represents a specialised production or processing area that was deliberately located towards the more marginal land in the southern extent of what may have been a relatively substantial settlement. Indeed this activity would have involved a lot of intense burning and so with it the associated noise, smoke and smell of a heavy industry. Settlement would have been around the Cistercian church and associated cemetery that would have formed the focus for the community. It would therefore seem reasonable to suggest that both of these must be associated with a viable population base, and the settlement is more likely to be located in the higher-lying lands to the north and north-east. If so, given the topography of the area, the industrial activity would not have been visible for the most part to people in both the settlement and ecclesiastical areas.