2007:395 - Downpatrick, Down

Archaeological investigations in the form of both testing and monitoring were carried out in April 2007 as a result of the proposed redevelopment and expansion of the existing wastewater treatment works and the construction of a new outflow pipe.
The testing and monitoring of the site would suggest that the groundworks associated with the construction of the original treatment works had impacted greatly on the site. In particular the south-east corner of the site had been very truncated, removing any archaeological deposits which might have existed there. The only noted exception to this ground reduction was a 6m-wide strip of land along the western boundary of the site. Here three features, part of a ditch, a hearth and a post-hole, were found.
The ditch appears to continue west into the adjacent field, currently under pasture, although no trace of the ditch or any associated features can be seen in the neighbouring fields. To the east all trace of this ditch has been removed during the landscaping associated with the original construction of the wastewater treatment works. It is likely that running parallel to the northern edge of the ditch would have been a bank created by the upcast material dug from the ditch when it was originally constructed. No trace of this presumed bank was found during the excavation, although one of the upper fills of the ditch, which slumped in from the northern edge, may have been the remains of a bank that had slipped or been pushed into the ditch. It is possible that it may have been part of a larger earthwork enclosing the summit of the hill or part of a wider series of earthworks associated with those found at Sargents Hill, located 100m to the north-west. However, the limited extent of the ditch surviving within the confines of the site mean that it is virtually impossible to draw such conclusions without further evidence.
The hearth was probably used as a small cooking pit, with a few small fragments of burnt bone, probably animal, indicative of this purpose. The stone found at the base could have been used as a hearthstone on which items could have rested while they cooked in the fire. This stone has been heat fractured and has broken but can be reassembled. This heat fracturing, along with the partial oxidisation of the subsoil base, suggest that the hearth was used on multiple occasions.
The post-hole was found in isolation, with no further post-holes uncovered. In the absence of further evidence, it is impossible to determine if this post-hole had always existed in isolation or if it was part of a structure or series of posts.
A number of samples were taken from the site with a view to further analysis and radiocarbon dating.