County: Louth Site name: Faughart Lower 12
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: A002/118; E3802
Author: Peter Bowen and Cia McConway, Archaeological Development Services Ltd, Windsor House, 11 Fairview Strand, Dublin 3.
Site type: Agricultural features
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 706144m, N 811075m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 54.037925, -6.379515
Louth County Council, the Roads Service NI (Department for Regional Development) and the National Roads Authority are currently proposing a road scheme, the A1/N1 Newry–Dundalk road. The route consists of 14.2km of 2-lane dual carriageway with 5.7km of associated link roads from Cloghoge roundabout, south of Newry, to the Ballymascanlan interchange, north of Dundalk. The proposed route was tested for archaeological and historic remains during Phase 1 of the project, after which this site was determined eligible for further archaeological excavations.
The site comprised an area measuring 21m north to south by 18.3m. The site was situated in a low-lying area at the bottom of a large slope, which lies further to the north. Therefore, the site was very waterlogged. The area of archaeological interest was located at the north end of the site. Three field boundaries or ditches and two pits were found. None of the features could be deemed definitely archaeological. They all appear to be post-medieval/
modern constructions. Sherds of post-medieval pottery were found in the upper fills of two of the field boundaries/ditches.
The lack of artefacts retrieved from the site hinders close preliminary dating of the features investigated. The three ditches or field boundaries are not stratigraphically linked. The two pits are each discreet features but there is a stratigraphic link between the pits and two of the ditches. One pit cuts one of the ditches and the other pit is cut by the northernmost ditch.
All the features on this site appear to be because of agricultural practices, possibly associated with the nearby old farmhouse.
Editor’s note: This report arrived too late for inclusion in the bulletin for 2005, when the work took place.
