County: Roscommon Site name: Bockagh 6
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 10E0381
Author: James Kyle, Irish Archaeological Consultancy Ltd, 120b Greenpark Road, Bray, Co. Wicklow.
Site type: Limekiln
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 560214m, N 797546m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.925743, -8.605741
Bockagh 6 was identified as a limekiln within the footprint of the proposed N5 Ballaghaderreen bypass during a second phase of testing undertaken in 2010 (see No. 577 below, 10E0298). The Stage (iii) excavation work was undertaken between 14 and 30 of September 2010.
Bockagh 6 comprised a drystone-built limekiln with a well-defined chamber and flue. The limekiln was built into a cut in the hill slope. The bowl/chamber was subcircular in plan, flat side to the west where the flue connected to the chamber and in the north-east where the bedrock intruded. The kiln was slightly corbelled with well-coursed construction with some heat damage evident on the roughly faced sandstone blocks. The flue was similarly constructed but with larger flatter blocks. Its opening was at the west into the prevailing wind. The lime was probably used to spread on the surrounding peatland to bring down the acidity of the soil. The flue or stokehole measured 0.3m x 0.3m. The flue shaft measured 2.2m long x 2.2m wide x 1.6m deep. The façade may have been faced and would have been approximately 6m wide.
