2008:952 - Abbeyland/Balsaran Commons/Duleek/Knockisland/Prioryland, Duleek, Meath

CRDS Ltd has been retained by Meath County Council to act as the archaeological consultants on the bundled wastewater collection system for County Meath. This project started in 2007 and will continue into 2009. Meath County Council retained CRDS Ltd to monitor c. 6204 linear metres of network pipe trench excavated in and around Duleek town, through five townlands: Balsaran, Commons, Duleek, Knockisland and Prioryland. SIAC/EPS also retained CRDS Ltd to monitor construction works on the Design, Build and Operate (DBO) contract, including a new wastewater treatment plant in Prioryland townland (footprint measuring c. 156m by 101m), a new pump station on Abbeylands (footprint measuring c. 57m by 17.5m), a rising main pipeline from the pump station across two rivers, the Paramada and Nanny, c. 337m from the pump station to the wastewater treatment plant, and an outfall pipe from the wastewater treatment plant 175m to the Nanny River. The treatment plant’s access road (171m) runs mainly along an existing track to the current wastewater treatment plant. Construction of the rising main pipe also took place in proximity to ME027–019, Prioryland Bridge.
Archaeological works on the network pipes in 2008 consisted of monitoring the pipe construction in the environs of Duleek town, test excavations within Duleek on Main Street, Larrix Street, Navan Road, Longford Road and Downestown Road, and in greenfield areas adjoining Larrix Street and Navan Road, and assessing and monitoring the river crossings of the Paramada River at Navan Road. The river crossing at Main Street was executed by tunnelling beneath the river. This work comprised the monitoring of 22 engineering trial pits and the excavation of six archaeological test-trenches: four on Main Street, Larrix Street, Navan Road, Downestown Road and Longford Road (Test Trenches 1, 3, 4 and 5) and two in greenfield trenches beside Larrix Street (Test Trench 2) and Navan Road (Test Trench 6).
A ground-penetrating radar geophysical survey of the town centre of Duleek in 2007 identified a large number of services but failed to identify any specific subsurface archaeological features (07R208). With no specific features to target, the test-trenches and the engineers’ route-approval trial pits provided an opportunity to investigate for the presence and general characteristics of the subsurface archaeological deposits. This strategy was limited by taking place on busy and narrow town streets: the extent of archaeological features could not be ascertained; there was limited or no scope for extending the investigation trenches on the roads and the depth of the trenches was limited for health and safety reasons. The test-trenches on the streets were a minimum of 1m wide, 2m long and were excavated to the surface of the natural subsoil or archaeology, whichever was encountered first. The test-trenches in the fields were 2m wide and extended along the length of the area to be disturbed by the pipe-laying works.
Archaeological deposits, which included metalled surfaces, most likely former road surfaces, were found on Main Street, Larrix Street and Downestown Road. Significant archaeological features and deposits were found at several locations on Main Street. At Test Trench 4, located near manhole C1, the road surface sealed a deposit which was similar in colour and composition to topsoil and which contained animal bone and brick. This deposit sealed a linear cut which extended across the north-west edge of the test-pit. This cut had a depth greater than 1.9m and 1.5m of its width was exposed within the trench. Its fill was a homogenous brown silt which contained no easily datable inclusions. A Test-Pit at manhole B4.2 measuring 2.1m by 2m; 0.95m depth sealed a possible subrectangular pit which was partially exposed within the test-trench. The fill of this feature contained animal bone and charcoal but no artefacts were recovered. This feature was cut into undisturbed boulder clay.
At the Navan Road close to the Dowdall wayside cross a test-pit uncovered a deposit 0.38m deep, similar to topsoil, beneath the road surface; this contained medieval and post-medieval pottery, brick, animal bone and iron slag, and sealed undisturbed boulder clay beneath. The greenfield trench off Larrix Street contained a series of ditches and banks of potential medieval date within the monastic enclosure around St Cianan’s Church. These archaeological features, and the pipe route on parts of Larrix Street and Main Street, were subsequently excavated by Stuart Elder (see No. 955 below, 08E0592).
Monitoring after this initial test-trenching revealed significant blue/grey silt deposits immediately east of the bridge on Main Street. It also uncovered a burnt feature in the trench in the roadway outside O’Neill’s public house at the southern end of the town. This appeared to be the remains of a truncated cereal-drying kiln and samples were taken for analysis and 14C dating. The remains of a number of culverts were found on Mill Street, Main Street and on Station Road.
Four test-trenches were excavated by Matt Seaver, as an extension to the monitoring licence, in Abbeylands townland. These were all within the land held by St Michael’s Grange, which belonged to the monks of Llanthony Prima, an order of Welsh Augustinian canons. The buildings of this grange are located immediately south-west of the County Council yard. Two trenches were dug in the Council yard. One revealed the remains of the RIC constabulary buildings overlying a cesspit of unknown date. Three trenches within a green field to the south of Duleek revealed high levels of dumped material up to 2m in depth. This field, to the east of the Council yard, contained a laneway leading from the constabulary barracks to Maudlin Bridge. No archaeological features were uncovered. Within the stone rubble a twin-light ogee-headed window from a late medieval building was found. In the Abbeylands housing estate two test-trenches were excavated. Trench 7 revealed part of a north–south ditch containing medieval pottery. Trench 9 contained riverine deposits of potential archaeological significance 2m under road deposits of gravel used to raise the level of the ground when the housing estate was built in the 1980s. Subsequent excavations, directed by Matthew Seaver, took place on this section of the route under a separate licence during 2009 (08E0825).
Archaeological works on the DBO contract consisted of monitoring the construction of the wastewater treatment plant, the rising main pipe and the outfall pipe. Nothing of archaeological significance was discovered at the wastewater treatment plant site. Two areas of archaeological interest were discovered on the flood-plain of the Nanny River on the rising main between the pump station and the new wastewater treatment plant. Area 1 was discovered at the south end of the wayleave next to the road R152 (NGR 305061 268384). This consisted of an area of cobbling measuring 18m by 9m, which formed a regularly laid surface of rounded and sub-rounded stones; this area extended from a ditch and wall in the east to the western limit of excavation. Area 2 was identified on a small piece of ground at the confluence of the Nanny and Paramada rivers, north-east of Prioryland Bridge (NGR 305132 268191). Here, monitoring identified a large metalled surface formed of closely laid and compacted stones and pebbles. This was investigated and found to be c. 0.05m deep and lying directly on natural subsoils. Both Areas 1 and 2 were subsequently excavated by Brendan Fagan (see No. 953 below, 08E0536). Monitoring of the construction of a new outfall pipe from the wastewater treatment plant south to the River Nanny in Prioryland townland discovered a c. 35m-wide palaeochannel of the River Nanny, the remains of a burnt mound on the edge of this channel and a cache of struck flints in this channel. This site was subsequently excavated by Ed Lyne (see No. 957 below, 08E0929). Archaeological works in Duleek will continue in 2009. This monitoring licence has been transferred to Matthew Seaver, CRDS Ltd.