2007:497 - DUBLIN: 47–54 Pearse Street, Dublin

Monitoring was undertaken at Nos 47–54 Pearse Street, Dublin 2. Previous archaeological works on site included an assessment prepared as part of a planning submission. This identified the presence of a glasshouse on the site recorded in 17th- and 18th-century sources. The assessment also noted the potential for archaeological remains associated with the old estuary, which pre-dates large reclamation works in the 17th and 18th centuries. The site was subsequently tested in April 2007 by Richard Clutterbuck. This assessment did not reveal any remains of a glasshouse but did expose various post-medieval and modern features.

Monitoring commenced on site in May 2007 and ran intermittently in two phases until September. Prior to the start of monitoring, soils on the site were found to be contaminated with a range of pollutants and it was determined that hand excavation was not possible for health and safety reasons. However, all groundworks were monitored to create a full photographic record supplemented by sketch plans and notes.

A number of early modern and modern features were shown to have survived on site. These consisted of a range of materials associated with the reclamation of the area from the River Liffey in the 18th and 19th centuries, as well as the creation of, and building along, Great Brunswick Street/Pearse Street and Magennis Place in the 19th and 20th centuries. Of note, a large brick deposit, presumably thrown down as part of a reclamation process, is probable evidence of brick fields that are known to have survived in the area. A range of features associated with the tenements on both of these streets were also encountered, including services, basement walls and boundary walls. A single red-brick structure, which appears to pre-date the buildings associated with Great Brunswick Street and Magennis Place, was also uncovered. It is thought this may represent an ancillary structure or store to the glasshouse recorded on the site in the sources.

The site was reduced to the level of natural gravels at –0.5m OD in all areas, except at Nos 51–54, a preserved structure which will be incorporated into the new development.