2007:510 - DUBLIN: 25–31 York Street, Dublin

Monitoring was undertaken on a site on York Street that originally held a terrace of houses (Nos 25–31). This stage of the construction is the second phase of development on the site. Originally Dublin City Council redeveloped Nos 17–25 as apartments. The current site will be developed as an extension to the Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland (RCSI).

Previous investigations had been undertaken on the site including two stages of test excavation. The first of these was undertaken by Donal Fallon in July and September 2005 (05E0709). A second phase was undertaken by Claire Walsh in March and May of 2006 (Excavations 2006, No. 651, 06E0109). These investigations covered the whole of the original terrace and uncovered ancillary structures and plot boundaries associated with the original Georgian houses. Gravels possibly associated with the River Steine were also encountered.

The development lies within the historic city of Dublin (DU018–020) and touches on the postulated outline of the ecclesiastical enclosure of Dubh Linn at the west end of the site. The original course of the River Steine was also thought to be in close proximity to the east end of the development.

This phase of testing was undertaken in June 2007 under a reactivation of the 2005 licence. Monitoring was to assess the site (Nos 25–31) following the removal of the Georgian basements in advance of ground reduction. Four cuttings (1–4) were excavated. Cuttings 1 and 2 were excavated to the depth of what was assumed to be natural river gravels. A range of material was exposed within the cuttings. This consisted largely of Georgian demolition rubbles laid in advance of the construction of the basements as well as Georgian services. Gravels and silts thought to be associated with the River Steine were also encountered. Within Cutting 2 a band of dark cess-like soil was also thought to represent the remains of a medieval pit that was heavily disturbed by the construction of the Georgian basements.

Cutting 3 and 4 were opened across a bank of soil against the southern retaining wall. This represented the rear of the original terrace on York Street, which was not removed during previous demolition works. The excavation in both these cuttings exposed material of 18th- and 19th-century date, including the remains of structures depicted on the OS maps dating to 1864. Finds from the site dated mainly to the 18th and 19th centuries, although a single sherd of medieval pottery was also recovered.