2011:408 - ORR STREET, KILMALLOCK, Limerick

A series of test trenches were excavated to establish the nature, extent and location of any subsurface archaeological features in order to assess the suitability of the site, which is adjacent to Kilmallock Town Defences (LI047-022006), the Collegiate Church of SS Peter and Paul (incorporating a round tower, LI047-022009 and LI047-022022) and a graveyard (LI047-022010), for use as a graveyard. The earliest mapping (c. 1600) shows this area as a series of street-fronting houses with undeveloped, undifferentiated ground behind. The results from the trenches indicated that there is roughly over 2m of fill and built-up material above the boulder clay throughout the site. Boulder clay was recorded at 2.3–2.7m below existing ground level except in one trench, where it was 1.6m below ground level. Traces of archaeological material, such as an isolated pit, were recorded at the level of boulder clay in two trenches. The overlying material is likely to originate from post-medieval industrial/commercial use and from an earlier significant period where the site was open ground.

Limerick County Council, County Hall, Dooradoyle, Co. Limerick