County: Galway Site name: Ballynaclogh
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: AR024; E3874
Author: Michael Tierney, The Archaeology Company Ltd, Hamilton House, Emmet Street, Birr, Co. Offaly.
Site type: Wetland/toghers and Mesolithic sites
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 574076m, N 726484m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.288038, -8.388791
Monitoring was carried out in October 2007, in advance of development works along the route of the N6 Galway to Ballinasloe Public Private Partnership Scheme at Ballynaclogh townland, Cappataggle, Co. Galway, and archaeological wood was identified. The site was located within an area of raised bog south-south-west of GA086–051. Excavations ran from March to September 2008. Ninety-seven cuttings (7.5m2) were opened over an area 80m by 80m. The fen peat deposits were up to 3m deep in places, and contained 56 potential individual features which were excavated, in addition to an area dating to the Mesolithic. All the features excavated were located no more than 1.8m within the peat, with some located as shallow as 0.08m beneath the sod level.
The features recorded included a possible 29 trackways or fragments of trackways which were degraded and of poor preservation, with a large quantity utilising the natural wood horizons, sixteen hearths, some of which contained Neolithic stone tools, one large wooden structure, c. 30m by 14m, and an area of Mesolithic activity identified by the presence of over c. 2000 stone tools located around the western boundary of the site, with animal bone, human teeth, antlers and pig/boar tusks also recovered. Dating is still to be confirmed as post-excavation work is ongoing; however, it is estimated that dates will range from Mesolithic to the medieval period.
