2009:584 - STATION ROAD, BALLA, Mayo

Excavation was carried out on a proposed development site at Station Road, Balla, Co. Mayo, in June 2009. The excavation followed the discovery of a spread of burnt material during pre-development testing at the site in June 2008 (Excavations 2008, No. 866). The burnt spread was uncovered in the north-west corner of the development site. It is situated in low-lying marsh adjacent to a watercourse, which forms the west boundary of the development site. A 25m• area was topsoil-stripped to reveal a subcircular burnt spread measuring 12m north–south by 10.2m, and 0.3m in depth. The spread was composed of loose, dark-brown silty clay with moderate inclusions of heat-shattered limestone and occasional charcoal flecks and heat-shattered sandstone. It overlay a peat layer and compact mottled orange/grey clay with patches of light-grey sand, and sealed a trough defined by a rectangular cut (1.05m by 2.55m by 0.2m) with three possible stake-holes at its western extent. The burnt spread was also partially covered by the peat, which extended c. 10m from the western boundary of the site and was evident along the length of the cutting. The build-up of peat is probably a result of flooding from the nearby stream. The site is interpreted as the remains of a fulacht fiadh.