County: Monaghan Site name: SITE 104, LISMAGUNSHIN
Sites and Monuments Record No.: SMR 19:6 Licence number: 05E0785
Author: Bruce Sutton, for National Archaeological Services, Ard Solas, Lacken, Blessington, Co. Wicklow.
Site type: Ringfort
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 675191m, N 825376m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 54.171838, -6.848380
Excavation was undertaken at Site 105 as part of the N2 Clontibret–Castleblayney road realignment. The site consisted of a small ringfort, c. 30m in diameter, at the northern end of a drumlin. A second larger ringfort (SMR 19:7) was located roughly 50m to the south. No trace of a ditch was present around the edge of the ringfort, but the hill had been scarped to form an artificial ridge 0.5m in height. Two small sections of a bank, 0.5m high, were visible in modern field boundaries, giving a total of 1m for the earthen defences. Only the northern, eastern and western side of the hill had been altered. The southern side of the site facing the larger ringfort to the south appeared to have no constructed defences.
A small number of burnt pits were located in the interior of the ringfort. These were shallow and probably served as hearth pits, used for a variety of activities, such as warmth and cooking. A blue glass bead was recovered from one of the pits. No internal structural elements were evident during excavation. A second set of small burnt features was located along the southern edge of the excavation, 40m to the south-west of the ringfort. It is unclear at present as to whether these were associated with the site.
