County: Carlow Site name: Moyle Big
Sites and Monuments Record No.: - Licence number: E002598
Author: Joanne Hughes, Headland Archaeology Ltd, Unit 1, Wallingstown Business Park, Little Island, Cork.
Site type: Medieval pit and possible metalworking activity
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 677149m, N 673548m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.807398, -6.855720
The site was excavated as part of the N9/N10 Kilcullen to Waterford scheme: Kilcullen to Powerstown. A castle (CW007–51) was identified several hundred metres south-west of the site. This site should be viewed in conjunction with sites E2593 (see No. 203 below), E2595 and E2597 (see Nos 192 and 194 above), as they may represent distinct elements and activities on the same site. The excavation was located c. 100m east of E2597. Testing in 2005 identified a small pit associated with metalworking debris, a substantial pit of medieval date and a possibly related linear feature. Animal bone and a long-sided composite bone comb were recovered from the medieval pit.
Excavation on the site revealed a total of fifteen possible features. A number of pits identified were quite substantial but contained little diagnostic inclusions. Two small, shallow linear pits were located to the west of the site 0.28m from each other. Both pits were circular in shape. The first measured 0.45m long by 0.4m wide and 0.16m deep; the second measured 0.47m long by 0.34m wide and 0.16m deep. They were filled with brown/black sandy silt with inclusions of charcoal, slag and stone. There was no evidence of burning in situ.
Three shallow burnt spreads with burning in situ were identified to the west of the site. One possible charcoal-production pit was located further east. This was subrectangular in shape and measured 0.7m long by 0.36m wide and 0.1m deep. The fill was black/brown silt sand and there was evidence of burning in situ at the base. A total of nine coarse pottery sherds were recovered from the deposit, along with charcoal and some burnt bone.
A large pit measuring 1.14m long by 1m wide and 0.51m deep was located 5m to the south of the feature mentioned above. It contained two deposits, a lower mid-brown silt sand with stone and gravel inclusions and an upper mid-brown/grey silt clay. A total of 253 sherds of possible medieval pottery, along with c. 150 pottery crumbs, were recovered from the upper fill. Other finds from this deposit included one corroded metal fragment, two possible worked stone tools, two small fragments of bone and a composite bone comb. This pit was identified as the substantial medieval pit discovered during testing.
