County: Sligo Site name: Carrowdough
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 07E0617
Author: Eoin Halpin, Archaeological Development Services Ltd, Windsor House, 11 Fairview Strand, Fairview, Dublin 3.
Site type: Gully, pits
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 561159m, N 834805m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 54.260598, -8.596134
The proposed development site is roughly trapezoidal in shape with maximum dimensions of 100m east–west by 65m comprising an approximate site area of 0.7ha.
The site is currently under pasture, which slopes uphill to the east and a small ridge. It is proposed to build seven new dwellings upon the site. The area of the site is dominated by Knocknarea, with the site of the Carrowmore megalithic cemetery (SL014–209, and zone of archaeological potential SL014–076) situated in its foothills, located approximately 1km to the west. In addition the presence nearby of a ringfort (SL013–034), two enclosures (SL013–033 and SL014–071), a souterrain and associated midden (SL013–088), a moated site (SL014–070) and a settlement hearth (SL013–109) led to the requirement for a pre-development assessment to be undertaken.
The eight-trench evaluation identified three archaeological features: a small gully, 0.6m long, 0.8m deep and 0.15m wide, and two pits, 1.4m and 3.5m in diameter. The features could not be dated but the layer of hill-wash or colluvium, at least 0.2m thick, sealing the features suggests some antiquity. On the basis of these findings it was recommended that the site be excavated in advance of development in order to mitigate the archaeological impact of the proposed development.
