2006:944 - Abbey Street, Castledermot, Kildare

A pre-planning test excavation was undertaken on 18 August 2006 at the Carpet and Furniture Centre, Abbey Street, Castledermot, Co. Kildare. The site is located within the zone of archaeological potential for Castledermot as outlined by the Urban Archaeological Survey.
The rectangular level site is demarcated on the western side by Abbey Street. The site consists of a modern warehouse and associated carpark space at the road frontage. The northern perimeter of the proposed development is indicated as being along the line of the town wall of Castledermot as identified in the Urban Survey. A stretch of the original town wall (c. 20m in length) survives on the opposite side of Abbey Street, a distance of c. 50m to the west of the proposed development. A gate (South Gate/Friary Gate/Tullow Gate) and associated road/surface into the medieval town were located somewhere between the surviving portion of the town wall and the eastern end of the footprint of the proposed development. The location of the road and associated gate is postulated in the Urban Archaeological Survey as being within the vicinity of the line of the town wall and its intersection with Abbey Street. The site of the proposed development is a distance of c. 30m to the north-east of the standing remains of the 13th-century Franciscan friary. The friary is located to the exterior of the town wall.
The proposed development shall consist of the demolition of the existing Carpet and Furniture Centre and the construction of a two-storey apartment building. The existing site perimeter walls (north, south and east) shall be retained as part of the proposed development.
The site was assessed on the basis of one test-trench in the centre of the footprint of the proposed development. The site consisted of a floor slab that overlay a modern rubble fill to a depth of 0.65m below the level of the present ground surface. The area along the southern side of the test-trench was heavily disturbed by the presence of mass concrete foundations. The trench was oriented east–west. A cobbled surface was identified at the eastern end of the trench at a depth 1.1m below the present ground surface. The cobbled surface is relatively level and consists of rounded stones that range between 0.15m and 0.3m in length. There was no evidence identified to date the cobbled surface. No evidence of the physical fabric of the town wall was identified in the test-trench. Subsequent testing was requested for the site prior to the demolition of the building.