2007:1270 - Bryanstown, Meath

In advance of a large multi-purpose development in Bryanstown, Co. Meath, a series of archaeological works have been commissioned by Declan Brassil & Co. Ltd and undertaken by ACS Ltd and Target Geophysics.
Geophysical survey on the area of the proposed football stadium produced a large signal, suggesting the presence of a settlement in the east of this site. Additional features, thought to be ditches, were located elsewhere in this field. Archaeological testing took place in this field in November 2007 and confirmed the presence of a large settlement site, as predicted by the geophysics. The settlement is defined by a series of rectilinear ditches that do not appear to have a defensive purpose. Unfortunately no dating evidence was recovered, but the settlement is suspected to date from the early medieval or medieval period. In addition to the settlement site, testing also uncovered a burnt-stone mound in the centre of the site.
The second part of this project involved the examination of four potential archaeological sites along the line of a proposed link road to be built to service the sports stadium. Examination revealed that two of the sites have archaeological significance, Bryanstown 2, which is a medieval bridge with associated road surface, and Bryanstown 3, which is an 18th-century bridge. The other two sites investigated did not turn out to have archaeological importance.
The settlement site was large and parts of it were identified in the first seven test-trenches excavated. It was decided to widen the third test-trench and concentrate excavations in that area. Three ditches were identified that matched the results of the geophysics. The first two ditches, F8 and F11, correspond to a small rectangular enclosure at the western edge of the settlement, while the third, larger ditch, F13, appears to represent a large boundary ditch contemporary with the settlement, as shown on the geophysical plot. It was also recorded in Trenches 5, 6, 7, 13, 15, and 16.
The first ditch, F11, was quite small, measuring 1.5m in width and 0.8m in depth. The second ditch, F8, was also reasonably small, measuring between 1.4m wide and 0.75m in depth. The third ditch, F13, was much more substantial and measured 3.5m in width and 1.4m in depth. Three features were identified within the enclosed area: two of these were to the east of ditch F11, while the third, F4, was located between ditch F5 and ditch F13. None of the internal features were observed to match up with anomalies on the geophysical plot.
F4 was highly irregular in shape and had an overall diameter of around 6m. This feature was not excavated, but the fill of the feature was a dark-blackish-brown, sandy clay that was obviously rich in charcoal, suggesting that this feature may have been a hearth, a pit or a kiln.
The second feature, F28, appeared as a spread of dark-brownish-black soil, measuring 7.2m from east to west and extending beyond both sides of the test-trench. A 0.7m-wide slot was excavated across the feature which was found to be up to 0.24m in depth.
The third feature, F20, also appeared as a spread of dark-brownish-black soil similar to F27, and it was also partially excavated. A 0.7m-wide slot was cut through the length of F20 from its western end until the point where the trench stopped at the edge of the development site. Therefore, the eastern limit of the feature was not uncovered, but it must have been at least 10m in length. The feature had an average depth of 0.25m and the base was covered in a continuous layer of cobbling, which was very fine at the western end of the feature but became coarser towards the east. A large pit had been cut through the spread of soil and through the base of the cobbling. It measured a maximum width of 4.1m from east to west, and was up to 1.16m in depth.
In the centre of the field a large burnt-stone mound was discovered. It was located in Trench 8, which was expanded in order to determine the size of the mound. The burnt-stone mound measured 6m from east to west by at least 10m. Two sections were excavated through the burnt-stone deposit, which was found to be between 0.4m and 0.5m in depth. No pits or troughs were identified during testing but such features may be expected both in the surrounding area and below the layers of burnt stone.
Bryanstown 2 – the medieval bridge
This site was located c. 40m west of the point where the present Beamore road, running south from Drogheda, crosses the Bog Stream. The site had been identified during an earlier site visit as the possible location of a stone-built mill-house, which was partially intact. Upon further examination it was discovered to be the remains of a small medieval bridge, which had been badly disturbed during the deepening of an adjacent stream in the mid-20th century. Examination of the local topography and a re-examination of the cartographic evidence revealed that the present road into Drogheda is relatively recent (18th-century) and that the old road from Drogheda to Dublin followed a more sinuous course. The line of the old road is preserved in the pattern of field boundaries and, for a section, as a tree-lined avenue leading to a farmhouse. Test-trenches dug to the north of the bridge uncovered a large area of cobble and mortar road surface, which had survived reasonably well, and a later cobbled surface which may have been a repair to the road.
The medieval bridge had been cut through diagonally by the deepened Bog Stream channel. It therefore survived intact for a small section at the western end but after this point only the northern side of the structure remained. The construction of the bridge was relatively simple. It consisted of a deep but narrow channel, flanked by two large, well-built stone walls. The gap between the walls was covered by large lintels, over which was placed a deep layer of mortared-in cobbles. The total length of the bridge was 10.3m and where it survived in its complete form it was 3.3m wide. The internal span was relatively narrow, being 1.2m wide at its western end and just 0.8m wide at the eastern end of the intact section. The total height of the structure can be estimated as being at least 2m from the top of the road surface and the bottom of the structure, although in no area was the base of the wall clearly exposed so a greater height must be envisioned.
The road surface that was investigated to the north of the bridge structure consisted of medium-sized cobbles set in an orangey-brown mortar. It was exposed for a total width of 3m and a total length of 8m but could be seen to extend beyond the edge of the trench in all directions. The eastern side of the road extended underneath a layer of much smaller cobbling, which may have been a later repair to the road surface or part of a trackway laid down once the road had gone out of use.
Bryanstown 3 – the post-medieval bridge
Examinations on the western side of the bridge on the present Beamore road over the Bog Stream revealed the partial survival of a post-medieval bridge. The removal of the plant growth that covered the bridge and concealed its nature produced immediate effects. The bridge was a small, well-constructed two-phased 18th-century structure, which had been replaced by a larger concrete pipe culvert during the mid-20th century. The original bridge consisted of a high-quality stone arch with a narrow span, standing on top of walls of presently unknown depth. The replacement bridge was located slightly to the south, in the deepened Bog Stream channel, and consists of a concrete pipe overlain by rough stonework and topped by a concrete raft. Currently, the post-medieval bridge has been partially infilled, with the end to the east of the Beamore road entirely covered over.