County: Dublin Site name: SWORDS CASTLE
Sites and Monuments Record No.: DU011-034001 Licence number: C450; E4376
Author: Sinclair Turrell
Site type: Monitoring
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 718200m, N 746967m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.459485, -6.220074
As part of their long-term restoration project at Swords Castle, Fingal County Council was granted ministerial consent to carry out groundworks through and around the entrance gatehouse. These involved the excavation of a duct trench, measuring 24m by 0.7m and 1.2m deep, through the centre of the entranceway and a small L-shaped trench to examine the footings of the western tower of the gatehouse. These works were carried out in June 2011.
During the monitoring of the duct trench in front of the gatehouse, two short parallel lengths of wall were encountered, running from east to west around 0.3m below the current tarmac surface. The northern wall, composed of roughly faced limestone blocks set in a limestone mortar, was 0.09m thick and as exposed was 1m high. A similar wall, which was found 3.05m to the south of this, was 0.5m thick and as exposed measured 0.8m high. Although the upper parts of these walls were of loose stone, the lower parts were still very solid. Since the bases of the walls were below the foundation level for the duct trench they were not exposed and the total surviving height of the walls remain unknown. These walls seem to have performed some function relating to the entrance to the castle, perhaps acting as a revetment and as footings for a bridge or ramp leading up to the gatehouse.
In the northern part of the entranceway there was an extremely compact surface of dense cobbling, composed of small limestone pebbles. This did not extend into the southern part of the entranceway, where there was a slightly lower cobbled surface, less dense and compact than the upper cobbling and made of slightly larger stones. It was best preserved on its southern and northern edges and had a distinct camber.
At the foot of the western gatehouse tower two adjacent limestone slabs were found, together with two vertical pieces of limestone lying beside them. These may be the remnants of a flag surface and its curb edging.
In the light of these discoveries it was decided to suspend the groundworks temporarily, pending the finalisation of a conservation plan which would help guide additional investigations here.
Archaeological Development Services Ltd, The Print House, Cumberland Street South, Dublin 2
