2007:186 - MONREAGH (1 and 2), Clare

These sites were discovered in an undulating peat-covered area at 23m OD. Monreagh 1 and 2 were situated on a raised ridge overlooking an area of deeper bog. These two areas of potential archaeology were discovered by test excavations on the route of the N18 Gort to Crusheen road scheme

Monreagh 1
This site was found to be a series of non-archaeological features. These were depressions and channels that were formed as natural ground-water springs eroded areas within the geological soil. In the majority of cases these channels became interconnected as streams of water flowed between them. They then filled naturally with peat. Within one of these natural depressions a large stone axe was found. Even though the features were non-archaeological, this area was a prime area for ritual deposition as it was situated in an area where wet land met dry. It was adjacent to a stream and wet land that was a townland boundary and a provincial boundary between Galway and Clare and Munster and Connaught. The saddle quern found at Monreagh 1 extension (below) may also be a case of ritual deposition into this same watery boundary area.

Monreagh 1 extension
This was an area of 10m2 opened around the findspot of a saddle quern that was found on the surface of the peat during the excavation phase of the project. It was situated within 15m of Monreagh 1 and spanned an area where the depth of the peat went from 0.3 to 1.2m; i.e. the interface between wet and dry ground. There were no other findings within this area. The saddle quern was made of yellow sandstone. The grinding surface was very smooth and the base had been worked in order to flatten it. This artefact was in good condition.

Monreagh 2
This was a burnt-mound site. Two limestone spreads that included c. 10% sandstone were found. The larger one measured 11.48m north–south by 8m in width and had a depth of 0.21m. The smaller of the two measured 7.05m north–south by 4m in width and had a depth of 0.18m. Between these two spreads the following were discovered: a circular well (1.68m by 2m by depth 1m) with a circular shallower trough (1.88m by 1.64m by depth 0.3m) attached to it in a figure-of-eight formation, a subrectangular trough (2.5m by 1.47m by depth 0.3m) and an oval- to oblong-shaped trough (2.3m by 1.05m by depth 0.39m). These features were all filled with burnt stones, predominantly limestone, but with some sandstone. All of these features except the oval trough contained small amounts of animal bone. These features were clustered together on a raised shelf that swept downwards to a wetter area in the south-east.

Higher up the hill there was another circular well (1.56m by 1.34m by depth 0.6m). This also contained animal bone. This was backfilled with silty clay. Nearby and at a still higher level up the hill were two subrectangular troughs; one appeared to have never been used, as it had a sterile silt fill (2.24m by 1.67m by depth 0.23m), and the other (1.97m by 1.34m by depth 0.32m) was backfilled with mixed sandstone and limestone burnt material. An irregular-shaped feature cut the trough (2.1m by 0.7m by depth 0.25m); this was interpreted as a possible trough. The fill was a sterile silt. This feature may have silted up after it went out of use. The remaining feature in this area of the site was a small crescent-shaped pit (1.38m by 0.64m by depth 0.24m). This feature was filled with burnt stones in dark-brown clayey silt.

The features may have been arranged at various heights up the hill to facilitate their utilisation during differing weather conditions, with the lower well and troughs being used in dryer weather when the ground conditions here were not as waterlogged and the higher well and troughs being more user-friendly in extremely wet weather. It was observed that following a dry period of a week the higher troughs drained of percolated ground-water, while those lower down the hill remained full of water.

120B Greenpark Road, Bray, Co. Wicklow