County: Sligo Site name: Rathscanlan
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 06E1059
Author: John O’Connor, ADS Ltd, Windsor House, 11 Fairview Strand, Fairview, Dublin 3.
Site type: No archaeological significance
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 551065m, N 810939m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 54.045300, -8.747175
A test excavation was conducted at Test Area 6, in Rathscanlan townland along the proposed route of the N17 Tubbercurry bypass, on 20 November 2006. This test excavation is one of eight conducted along the middle section of the N17 realignment, Collooney to Charlestown. It comprises a 10.5km section of the N17 national primary route from the townland of Rhue, 2km to the south of Tubbercurry, to Tullyhugh, 1km north of Achonry Creamery.
A series of test-trenches were excavated in this area due to the identification of a number of possible features, representing field boundaries and cultivation ridges. Testing revealed shallow remains of a number of plough furrows, but also evidence that the field had been levelled. It was subsequently learned that the field had been bulldozed in the 1980s. Ripper marks were spotted along the length of the centre trench, T7. The ripper at the back of the bulldozer was used to break up hard subsoil after the site had been levelled. Nothing of archaeological significance was discovered during the test excavation.
