County: Donegal Site name: Doonan
Sites and Monuments Record No.: DG093–012 (vicinity of) Licence number: 07E0002
Author: Declan Moore, Moore Archaeological & Environmental Services Ltd, Corporate House, Ballybrit Business Park, Ballybrit, Galway.
Site type: Testing
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 591617m, N 878907m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 54.658273, -8.129911
Testing was carried out at Doonan, Co. Donegal, on 9 and 10 January 2007. The proposed development involves the construction of 49 dwelling houses, the demolition of a derelict house and shed and the installation of all ancillary services. The subject area is located to the south of DG093–012, a ringfort. Outline planning permission to build was granted by Donegal County Council subject to an assessment prepared on the basis of at least one trial-trench.
A preliminary site assessment was carried out in 2006 involving a field inspection. The site occupies an irregular area located in the townland of Doonan, situated north of the N56 Donegal–Killybegs road and east of a river that flows through Duncan’s Bridge. The site can be divided in two, between boggy marginal pasture to the north and better grazing land to the south. Two features were noted during the inspection: a recumbent stone to the south-west of the subject areas and a possible fulacht fiadh to the south near Rosslee House.
Each field had a minimum of one linear trench mechanically excavated through it. Testing exposed a generally uniform stratigraphy consisting of sod and topsoil on boulder clay on the dryer more elevated ground and mossy grass and rushes overlying marly clay and peat in the more low-lying ground. Testing near the recumbent stone failed to produce any archaeological finds or features; however, heat-fractured stone in a charcoal-rich matrix was exposed in the vicinity of the possible fulacht fiadh.
