2011:645 - RATHGALL HILLFORT, RATH EAST, Wicklow

An assessment took place under ministerial consent of the southern part of an excavation trench which ran from the inner ‘cashel’ built over the Bronze Age enclosures and deposits related to funerary, metal-working and ritual activity and through the main earthen rampart (Rampart 2) and ditch (Ditch 2) at Rathgall hillfort (Becker 2010). The trench was part of the archaeological excavations directed by Professor Barry Raftery in 1978 and known as Trench X, Area 9. The assessment was necessary in order to assess the condition of the trench for backfilling and as a consequence to enhance our understanding of the chronology of the enclosure in advance of the forthcoming publication on the original excavations. This involved removing collapsed stonework, vegetation and silting, cleaning and drawing the western section face and taking samples from the base of the rampart and ditch. Twelve samples were taken from archaeological deposits and no artefacts were recovered.

The main rampart measured 7m in width by 1.5m in height. The re-examination of the section revealed three stages in rampart construction. Pre-dating the rampart were a series of grey and reddish-brown silt deposits which appeared to be cut and disturbed at their northern end; in the original 1978 excavations these yielded mould fragments and Bronze Age coarseware pottery, along with a number of post-holes and pits. Three new radiocarbon determinations indicate that these deposits beneath the rampart dated from cal. BC 1400–1133, providing a considerably tighter range than the original dates. At its northern end the disturbed deposits pre-dating the rampart were overlain by a series of very large granite slabs. These were covered by a bank of yellow boulder clay. This was overlain by a substantial deposit of yellow boulder clay with frequent granite fieldstones. Finally, a stone revetment was built against the northern edge of the rampart. The entire sequence is likely to have taken place over a considerable period of time.

The 1978 excavations revealed a large ditch, 3.8m in width by 2.5m in depth, immediately south of the rampart. Originally five radiocarbon dates were obtained from diffuse unspecified charcoal within the upper deposits. They had very broad ranges and the majority belonged to the first millennium AD. Four new radiocarbon dates were obtained for the basal fills of the ditch immediately to the south of the rampart. One charred vetch seed was dated to the Early Mesolithic. A hazel charcoal sample was dated to the Middle Bronze Age. The other two dates, obtained from hazel charcoal, are early medieval, focused on a tight date range in the 7th century AD (cal. AD 606–772). Charcoal analysis by Dr Lorna O’Donnell demonstrated that while there were species common to the pre-bank deposits and the ditch, there were also distinct species, suggesting a considerable change in charcoal production and possibly landscape between these two events. The trench was subsequently backfilled and the rampart reinstated to an agreed methodology.

There are no explicit early medieval references to the site at Rathgall as far as has been established by older research (Orpen 1911)

It was assumed in the original excavations that the ‘inner cashel’ was built at some time during the early medieval period. The stone facing around the inside of Rampart 2 was also considered likely to have been built at this time. Sherds of what was initially thought to be Souterrain Ware were recovered in the original excavations but have not been verified on specialist examination. A rectangular house of high medieval form associated with ceramics from the later 13th century was excavated in the area between the inner cashel and outer enclosure (Raftery 2007).

The new information suggests that Later Bronze Age occupation deposits were covered by a smaller original bank composed of large stones and yellow boulder clay. The dating of this episode is still unclear. Medieval reuse began with a rebuilding/modification of the enclosures in the 7th century AD. This is likely to have involved covering the original enclosure bank and stones of Rampart 2, which covered Later Bronze Age occupation deposits, with a new massive earthen bank from the upcast soil from the ditch. This may have involved recutting a previously existing Bronze Age ditch. Alternatively, the earlier Bronze Age enclosure did not have a ditch and was composed of very large stones and earth like Rampart 3 to the south.

The assessment has added significantly to the study of the enclosure sequence and will contribute to the final publication on this important site.

References

Becker, K.  2010  Rathgall, Co. Wicklow. Archaeology Ireland Heritage Guide 51. Dublin.

Orpen, G.H.  1911  Rathgall, County Wicklow. Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland (6th ser.) 1 (2), 138–50.

Raftery, B.  2007  The medieval settlement at Rathgall, County Wicklow. In J. Lyttleton and C. Manning (eds), From ringforts to fortified houses: studies on castles and other monuments in honour of David Sweetman, 00–00. Bray.

University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4