2009:499 - THE PARADE, MAYOR’S WALK, CANAL SQUARE AND CANAL WALK; ENVIRONS OF KILKENNY CASTLE, Antrim

Refurbishment of the area around Kilkenny Castle commenced in April 2008 following a season of testing in 2007. Work continued on this project until the end of October 2009 and a decision to install a new water main as part of the project, to replace the existing leaking pipe which was over 100 years old, resulted in some important features being revealed.

Perhaps the most significant find was the edge of the moat at a distance of 10.15m from the wall of the Parade Tower. Part of a human skull was found behind the stones used in its construction. Post-holes suggest the presence of a protective fence to prevent people and animals from falling into this 5m-deep defensive structure.
Another feature that was only partially exposed in this trench was present beneath the burgage plot soil so must therefore be from the period before the plots were established. This was a subrectangular stone pad which may have been a base providing support for a vertical beam or pillar, or alternatively may have been a stone-built pit used in mortar production.
Remains of walls were also found in the mains water trench including part of the town or city wall which had been dug along its length previously when a service was installed. This prevented its width from being established. Part of another wall found nearby was probably from the gatehouse and there were cobbled or metalled surfaces present both inside and outside the city wall.
A very sturdily built, silted-up tunnel running from the castle towards St Patrick’s graveyard was breached by the trench for the water main. This is referred to locally as ^Cromwell’s’ tunnel but it was probably not yet built when Cromwell attacked in 1650.
The remains of a large well were uncovered outside the entrance to the Bank of Ireland building (currently the Left Bank pub) at the bottom of Patrick Street. In this general area at the bottom of The Parade, including parts of Patrick Street and Rose Inn Street, the layers containing medieval deposits, where they remain, are at a relatively shallow depth beneath the present surface, typically at 0.3–0.5m in depth.
A number of stone box-drains from the Georgian period serving the buildings on The Parade were also recorded, as were various examples of later cobbling.
Some chainmail was recovered from sample washing, and a considerable number of lead-shot pieces and part of an early matchlock musket were some of the finds that were related to military matters. Coins and seals as well as some items of jewellery dating back to the 12th century were found.