2005:1377 - KNOCKATOBER, Sligo

Monitoring of groundworks at a development which consisted of the construction of a two-storey house and garage with septic tank and percolation area in Knockatober townland, Ballintogher, Co. Sligo, was carried out on 28 February 2005. Monitoring was recommended following pre-development testing of the site in October 2004 (Excavations 2004, No. 1530).
The proposed development was located within the archaeological constraint for two monuments, a possible road (SMR 21:57) and a collapsed portal tomb (SMR 21:58). The tomb was visible in the field across the road to the east. The possible road traversed the development site. A 1768 estate map (taken from an article, ‘A County Sligo estate map of 1768’ by Ada K. Longfield (Mrs. Leask), in the Quarterly Bulletin of the Irish Georgian Society 20(1 & 2) 1977) showed the possible road feature as a road or track which gave access from the main road to the north to a house belonging to a Mr Armstrong. The previous testing at the site had revealed nothing of archaeological significance.
An area was stripped of topsoil for the entrance, driveway, dwelling, garage, septic tank and percolation area. The area stripped for the driveway, dwelling and garage measured 38.5m west-north-west/east-south-east by 19.5m. The area stripped for the dwelling through the septic tank to the percolation area measured 21.5m west-north-west/east-south-east by 2.2m. The area stripped for the percolation area measured 12.5m north-north-east/south-south-west by 8.5m. The areas were stripped to between 0.1 and 0.6m.
Below the topsoil (which measured 0.2–0.4m thick) was orange/grey/brown friable silt loam (sterile natural subsoil). Two sherds of modern pottery were uncovered within the area stripped for the percolation area. The only physical evidence of the road/track was a thin layer of gravel or pebbles visible within the topsoil, which must have been the road/track surface. The monitoring revealed nothing of archaeological significance.