County: Antrim Site name: culnafay, Newferry
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: AE/07/037
Author: David Kilner, Archaeological Development Services Ltd, Unit 6, 21 Old Channel Road, Belfast, BT3 9DE.
Site type: No archaeological significance
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 699030m, N 897971m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 54.819842, -6.459063
Testing took place at a leisure facility owned by Ballymena Borough Council located at Newferry, Co. Antrim, over two days in February/March 2007. The facility currently consists of toilets, a carpark, picnic facilities and a slipway. The testing was in relation to the proposed redevelopment of the facility, which will include the construction of a new public slipway, revetment treatment, floating jetties, cande steps, footpaths, amenity lighting and minor improvements in the public carpark.
The site is located close to a well-known Mesolithic settlement site (ANT036–004) excavated by Professor Peter Woodman during the early 1970s. Anticipating that the proposed groundworks could impact upon similar prehistoric settlement layers, EHS: Built Heritage required an archaeological evaluation in advance of their decision being issued to Planning Service.
This evaluation took the form of a trench excavated along the line of the proposed slipway, through an existing bank and the adjacent carpark area.
No archaeological deposits were uncovered along the length of the trench.
