2008:681 - Naas South Interceptor, Osberstown/Jigginstown, Kildare

Topsoil-stripping took place along the line of a proposed sewer between Osberstown and Jigginstown, Co. Kildare, on behalf of Kildare County Council. It traversed what was mostly flat pastureland to the west and north-west of the town of Naas and some low-lying boggy patches. Three artificial features were discovered. Two shallow drains with shallower channels at right angles were probably of relatively recent date. In a boggy area with a layer of peat 0.3–0.4m deep, much of the peat had been removed in rectangular cuttings with narrow baulks left between them. They had been backfilled with sand. This probably represents land reclamation, as the field appeared as a normal grass-covered pasture, with no bog vegetation. Finally there was a burnt spread consisting of black soil containing heat-shattered stone. The stones were less dense than would normally be found in the remains of a burnt mound, and more varied in size, but the entire deposit had been cut through by ploughing or spade cultivation. They may have been spread from a burnt-mound deposit outside the stripped area. There were no pits or any other features.
No artefacts were found in association with any of these features. The stripped area included the location opposite Jigginstown House which had been investigated in 2007 (Excavations 2007, No. 820). Nothing further was found here.