2008:763 - Ballybronogue South/Attyflin, Limerick

Monitoring of the Limerick County Council water mains upgrade running from Adare to Patrickswell in County Limerick was carried out between February and April 2008. The pipeline was split into two sections, which joined at the Attyflin interchange. Section one began at NGR 151988 149370 and ran for 3490m westwards along the edge of the N21, section two began at NGR 1551142 148354 and travelled south for a distance of 1,600m following the route of the N20. Two areas of archaeological significance were revealed.
Area B was located at NGR 151151 148317 in the townland of Ballybronogue South. It consisted of a hearth feature and a small post-hole. The hearth measured 0.8m long, 0.7m wide and 0.14m deep and contained a single charcoal-rich fill. The post-hole was circular in shape and measured 0.31m in diameter and 0.21m in depth. It contained a single silty clay fill with occasional charcoal flecking throughout.
Area C was located at NGR 151768 149068 in the townland of Attyflin. It consisted of approximately one fifth of a horseshoe-shaped burnt mound which had been partially excavated on the northern side by Cia Mc Conway, ADS Ltd (Excavations 1997, No. 326, 96E0379), during works on the N20 in 1996–7. It measured 13.4m long, 5.6m wide and 0.5m deep, with a substantial amount of heat-shattered stone in a matrix of charcoal-rich silt. Upon excavation, three pits, ranging in size from 2.3–2.4m long, 0.65–3.5m wide and 0.4–1m deep, were revealed beneath the mound. All contained similar burnt-mound material. The majority of the burnt-mound feature is preserved in situ to the north of the pipeline. Two linear features were also identified. These have been interpreted as post-medieval field boundaries.