County: Mayo Site name: CLOONFANE
Sites and Monuments Record No.: 152863 300629 Licence number: A020/041, E3407
Author: Agnes Kerrigan, for Mayo County Council
Site type: Burnt spread
Period/Dating: Undetermined
ITM: E 493454m, N 771836m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.685373, -9.612994
Excavations were undertaken on this site on 2–21 November 2005. The site was newly identified during centreline testing (A020/003) and was fully excavated in advance of the construction of the N5 Charlestown bypass. This site was situated at the base of the south slope of a south-west/north-east-orientated ridge at an altitude of 106m OD. The southern limit of the site was defined by the Fauleens/Cloonfane townland boundary, a west–east flowing stream. The spread was oval-shaped and consisted of fire-cracked stones in a charcoal-rich silty clay. The spread measured 16.25m east–west by 8m by 0.4–0.08m thick.
The spread had been cut by several modern agricultural furrows aligned north–south, all of which were filled with a mixture of topsoil and mound material. It had been disturbed in the north-west quadrant by the construction of a coursed stone wall and associated foundation trench. No other features of archaeological interest were identified.
Drummin, Westport, Co. Mayo
