2006:1021 - Earlsrath, Kilkenny

The excavations at Earlsrath, sites E2510, E3005, E3006 and E3007, were undertaken as part of the archaeological programme for the N9/N10 Waterford to Powerstown road scheme.
A large area was machine-stripped for site E3007 and divided into three areas. The site was situated on marginal land. Area 1 was located on boggy ground to the north and Areas 2 and 3 were located on higher ground to the south that was covered by a very thin layer of soil with occasional bedrock outcrops. The features within Area 1 seemed to represent three main phases of activity. The earliest phase was probably a curvilinear ditch, which contained some sherds of possible prehistoric pottery. Pieces of late medieval or post-medieval pottery were recovered from two shallow boundary ditches. The latest features identified were north–south-orientated linear field drains that were c. 20th-century in date. No discernible order could be seen in the ditches and they probably represent different attempts at draining the boggy area over the years.
All of the four features excavated within Area 2 proved to be spreads or dumps of refuse and, apart from the odd flake of charcoal, contained mostly pottery. The pottery recovered was for the most part thick and course. It was orange/buff in colour and contained mica inclusions. One spread located in the centre of Area 2 contained substantial amounts of charcoal as well as pottery sherds. The pottery found within this spread was less coarse and thinner than the other pottery on the site. The colour appeared to be a mid-brown/orange and there were inclusions of mica. It seems probable that the low quality of the soil within Area 2 would have made it ideal for its use as a refuse tip. The material may well have been rubbish from the nearby moated site (KK036–032). The field boundaries from Area 1 may also be associated with this monument.
No archaeology was identified within Area 3. There was only a thin layer of subsoil, through which natural bedrock protruded.