County: Laois Site name: KILLEANY (2)
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: A015/145, E2250
Author: Ken Wiggins, Archaeological Consultancy Services Ltd.
Site type: Structure
Period/Dating: Prehistoric (12700 BC-AD 400)
ITM: E 635928m, N 687078m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.933318, -7.465568
This site was located within Contract 3 of the proposed M7 Portlaoise to Castletown/M8 Portlaoise to Cullahill motorway scheme and was identified during advance testing by the writer in March–April 2005 (Excavations 2005, No. 890, A015/053). It was excavated on behalf of Laois County Council, funded by the National Roads Authority, in March 2006.
The site was situated at the base of a low hill on a gently sloping field bounded to the north-west by the River Gully, woodland to the north and wetland to the north-east. The land had been heavily ploughed and drained. Topsoil-stripping revealed the remains of a prehistoric house structure (Structure A) comprising a circular slot-trench, measuring 5.35m by 5.24m externally, and the partial remains of an earlier slot-trench, probably from a subrectangular building with rounded corners (Structure B). The centre of Structure A was truncated by a narrow drainage ditch, aligned north-west/south-east. There were two other ditches on the same axis, to either side of Structure A. Ditch A extended close to the north side of Structure A and could possibly be contemporary with the structure, perhaps the remains of a prehistoric field boundary. It was filled with silty material. Ditch B to the south was a levelled field boundary, which contained fibrous tree roots in the upper fill.
The site was impacted on by agricultural activity and there were two separate groupings of furrows, one parallel to Ditch B, the other aligned north–south on the west of the site. Finds included a flint arrowhead, which was located on the surface of the subsoil close to Structure A.
Unit 21, Boyne Business Park, Greenhills, Drogheda, Co. Louth
