2006:2129 - Burrow, Rosslare, Wexford

An assessment of a proposal to renovate and extend a single-storey cottage at Burrow, Rosslare, was undertaken. The proposed development is located within the area of constraint for a church site. No trace of the church or graveyard was visible. Documentary sources relating to the site are scarce and those that do exist are somewhat contradictory. It is known, however, that there was a church, a graveyard and a holy well situated here from at least the late 17th century. The presence on the site of a ‘holy well’ dedicated to St Brioc may point to an earlier origin, but there is no other evidence available to support such a contention. The archaeological interventions included testing and a survey and assessment of the cottage to determine if any historic fabric was present within the dwelling.
Two small cuttings were opened within the proposed development area, in which nine inhumation burials were identified. The east–west orientation of the graves, with the head to the west, indicates clearly that the cemetery is of a Christian origin and may be associated with the Burrow church site. The distribution and density of the burials, and the evidence for intercutting of graves, is indicative of a rather extensive and long-lived cemetery. The removal of modern renders uncovered fragments of the south wall of the church, though no features of note were recorded. A mitigation strategy to allow for the preservation in situ of all of the archaeology was drawn up and approved by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. It is expected that further archaeological monitoring will take place at the site in 2007.