2008:1262 - Newdown, Westmeath

Testing was undertaken on WM027–004 (an enclosure) on behalf of Westmeath County Council as part of the N4 The Downs grade separation scheme. The site lay 11km east of Mullingar, immediately south of the N4 at The Downs, Newdown, Co. Westmeath. Geophysical survey was carried out prior to testing by Target Archaeological Geophysics. The results of this appeared to confirm the presence of a subcircular enclosure as depicted on the OS maps.
Two sites (WM027–001 and WM027–002) lay in close proximity to the testing area. The present site was situated directly to the south of the N4. WM027–001 was located on the northern side of the N4 and 0.16km due north, whilst WM027–002 was also located on the northern side of the N4 and 0.42km due east.
The removal of 0.4m of topsoil, in six trenches, revealed a subcircular enclosure. The ditch or fosse was 45m in maximum diameter, 2.3–4.2m in width and 0.5–1.2m in depth. No evidence was found for a bank associated with this ditch and no artefacts were recovered.
Three sites were investigated during this project. The second site, an enclosure, WM027–001, was located 150m north of WM027–004. Testing at WM027–001 revealed two concentric subcircular ditches with a probable hearth in the interior (see No. 1264 below, 08E0326). The third site was located a further 0.32km north of the second site and was the location of a suspected burnt mound. The much-denuded remains of a burnt mound/fulacht fiadh were uncovered and measured 4m in diameter and 0.2m in height.
The findings on the present site confirmed the presence of a subcircular enclosure as seen on the third-edition OS map as WM27–004 and as detected by the geophysical survey. Morphologically, these remains appeared to be those of a ringfort.