County: Carlow Site name: Busherstown
Sites and Monuments Record No.: - Licence number: E2579 (E2580)
Author: Angus Stephenson, Headland Archaeology Ltd, Unit 1, Wallingstown Business Park, Little Island, Cork.
Site type: Pits and ditches
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 677568m, N 675735m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.826986, -6.848989
The site was excavated as part of the N9/N10 Kilcullen to Waterford scheme: Kilcullen to Powerstown. Testing had been was carried out under Ministerial Direction A021/021 (Excavations 2005, No. 71).
Geophysical survey had identified a probable prehistoric ring-ditch in the adjacent field and, when it was realised at an early stage that this continued under the field boundary hedge into this field, it was agreed that the whole part of the ditch within the road-take zone should be excavated (under Ministerial Direction A021/022, E2580), whilst the outlying features in the remaining area, c. 400m2, to the north of it should be excavated under Ministerial Direction A021/021. The hedge separating the two areas, which ran from south-west to north-east, was removed at the beginning of topsoil-stripping.
Two further linear features were partially excavated north of, and running parallel to, the hedge and bank of the field boundary removed at the beginning of the resolution phase. These were 1m and 1.6m wide and 0.25m and 0.15m deep respectively and were interpreted as similar former field-boundary remains.
The pit identified during testing was re-examined and several other apparently cut features in the area were also investigated but found to be of non-archaeological origin.
