County: Waterford Site name: CARRICKAREADY
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 06E0282
Author: Joanna Wren, Headland Archaeology Ltd.
Site type: Burnt mound
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 641754m, N 601763m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.166117, -7.389658
A spread of heat-shattered stone and charcoal was uncovered during archaeological work in advance of the East Waterford water supply scheme (06E0163, see No. 2002, Excavations 2006). On excavation the spread proved to be the remains of a burnt mound or fulacht fiadh at the eastern edge of a small stream, a tributary of the River Mahon. Below the stones and by the stream a circular earth-cut pit was uncovered. It measured 1.74m in diameter and 0.8m deep. When excavated, the base of the pit began to fill with water from the stream; it probably served as a trough for the fulacht fiadh. Some 3.6m east of the pit were a pair of shallow, oval, stone-lined pit features which may have been the remains of hearths.
All of these features were covered by the spread of heat-shattered stone and charcoal measuring 7.2m east–west by 10.4m. One sherd of worked flint was recovered from the mound and soil samples were taken from all features. These are currently being processed for charcoal and macrofossil remains.
Unit 1, Wallingstown Business Park, Little Island, Cork
