2008:098 - Putiaghan Upper 2, Cavan

Excavation took place on 13 and 14 March 2008 along the route of the proposed N3 Butlersbridge to Belturbet road improvement scheme for Cavan County Council and the National Roads Authority. Putiaghan Upper 2 was one of three sites excavated on the Shore of Putiaghan Lake; it is likely that all three sites were associated and formed part of an overall industrial complex (see Nos 99 and 100 below). The features excavated consisted of burnt spreads, post-holes and pits.
A burnt spread that measured 3.6m by 3.2m by 0.18m was located close to the edge of Putiaghan Lake. The spread consisted of black silty clay and burnt stones and overlay a natural deposit of lacustrine sediment. Located to the west was a second burnt spread, measuring 5m by 4.55m by 0.08m. This spread consisted of clayey sand with inclusions of burnt stones and charcoal and overlay two post-holes. A large sub-oval pit, 1.2m by 0.8m by 0.1m, contained an upper fill of clay, charcoal and oxidised clay fragments and a primary fill of a mix of charcoal and silt. The smaller of the pits was 0.39m by 0.16m by 0.07m, located 1.8m north, and contained one fill of clay silt with frequent inclusions of charcoal. During the excavation of this pit a 0.1m-diameter piece of slag was found along with a small amount of cremated bone.
The remaining post-holes consisted of the burnt posts, 0.27m in diameter and 0.08m deep, 0.25m diameter and 0.40m deep and 0.15m by 0.1m by 0.02m, both of which were located in the northern area of the site and were associated with root-burning activity.
The features excavated were of probable prehistoric date as suggested by their possible association with burnt-mound activity and most probably date to the Bronze Age period.