2008:461 - Folkstown Little, Area 9, Dublin

The excavation at Area 9 of the zoned industrial lands located to the south and south-west of Phase 5 of the Balbriggan Outer Relief Road took place from 19 November 2008 to 23 January 2009. The remains of a field system, associated features and possible structures were identified during testing of the site by Helen Kavanagh of IAC Ltd (see No. 493 below, 08E0375). These were later further tested and excavated by James Kyle of IAC Ltd under an extension to licence 08E0054 (Folkstown Great, Area 2/3, No. 458, above). The site area was 4033m2 in total and located in pastureland on a westerly-facing gentle hill slope. Part of the excavation area was located within the constraint of DU005–001, the site of a chapel.
The earliest evidence of occupation or use of the site was located immediately west of the centre of the site and this comprised of a small number of prehistoric features. These were centred on an irregular shaped north–south-oriented linear cut (length 4.2m, width 1m, depth 0.3m), which had five post-holes situated at its northern end and fourteen small stake-holes present around the remainder of its margins. Adjacent to the western side of the linear feature was an east–west-oriented shallow pit (length 1.2m, width 0.8m, depth 0.14m), which was surrounded by ten small stake-holes. In addition to these a further pit was located 2m north-east of the linear cut and this appeared to be present as a result of the same phase of activity. Finds retrieved from these features included flint debitage and sherds of prehistoric pottery suggesting a possible Early Bronze Age date.
The next phase of activity dates to the medieval period. This phase is characterised by two main elements. Adjacent to the western boundary of the site were the remains of a medieval building (length 10m north–south, width 8m, depth 0.6m). This structure was partially dug into the natural subsoil of the gradual south-west-facing slope, which aided its preservation to some degree. Part of the external drystone walling was preserved at the northern and eastern side of the structure. These walls appear to have been representative of a restructuring or resetting of the floor plan, as two parallel possible foundation cuts (length 10m, width 1m, depth 0.6m) were present, slightly off orientation, which may have formed the original building foundations. The western of these two possible foundation trenches yielded one of the more significant finds on-site in the form of a corroded, possibly decorated, copper-alloy bucket base. Internally several possible drainage features were present and the internal demolition fill yielded a further significant find in the form of part of a copper-alloy balance scales, with several accompanying weights, including a decorated spherical copper alloy weight. Pottery finds associated with the structure appear to suggest that this building was in use during the 12th–14th century. The function of the structure is at present unclear but it potentially may have been domestic, agricultural or commercial or a combination of these. The two high status finds suggest perhaps a religious or commercial use, possibly linked to the chapel site located within the adjacent field to the west.
The second medieval element to the site was primarily made up of agriculturally based features, comprising a series of field boundaries and drains. The most substantial of these possessed a length of 32m (width 2.1m, depth 1m), extending north-north-west/south-south-east across the site, close to the eastern perimeter. This ditch contained several homogenous layers of silt filling, some of which contained 12th–14th-century pottery. This linear boundary formed a right angle with a further ditch with a length of 21m (width 3m, depth 1.2m), which extended east-south-east/west-north-west across the site. This contained similar contemporary filling and finds. This arrangement thus formed part of a field system oriented to front onto the adjacent laneway to the west of the site, which runs north-east/south-west before turning north-west/south-east in the north-west corner of Area 5. Along the highest point of the enclosed field was a series of short, often curvilinear, gullies which would have aided drainage in the area, possibly allowing the storage of hay ricks in the better drained, highest point of the enclosed area. It appears that this medieval activity is associated with the medieval settlement discovered within Area 10 of the zoned development lands excavated by Helen Kavanagh (see No. 493 below, 08E0375). This possible ‘ladder’ or linear medieval settlement focuses on the still extant roadway that travels through Folkstown Little and Folkstown Great. The focus of activity in Area 10 is located c. 70m to the north-north-west of the medieval activity in Area 9.
The last phase of activity on-site, prior to the modern era, was of a post-medieval date and appears to follow similar lines as the medieval use of the area. Firstly the use of the field system for agricultural purposes continues and evidence of attempts to improve the area take the form of single north–south- and east–west-oriented stone-lined drains, with a more complex network running across the centre of the area. The location of these more modern field boundaries shows little change from that of their medieval counterparts, representing a continuity of landscape use. The second element that bares comparison was the presence of a partly preserved post-medieval stone building, with a cobbled interior, orientated east–west (length 5m, width 4m, depth 0.5m). This was present in the north-west corner of the site and would have fronted onto the laneway. Some evidence was present in this area, in the form of linear cuts, to suggest that a small garden may have been located at the rear of the possible house. The second structural element on-site dating to this period was located in the centre of the site, close to the eastern boundary in a well-drained corner of a post-medieval field. This comprised two east–west-oriented, drystone-walled rectangular structures adjacent to one another. The floors of these structures were sunken into the natural subsoil. The larger of these was 3m by 2.1m and 0.5m deep. The smaller was 2.1m by 1.8m and 0.5m deep. Both contained rough cobbled flooring and may have functioned as small animal shelters, possibly pigsties.