County: Sligo Site name: Ballydoogan
Sites and Monuments Record No.: SL014-119 Licence number: 12E0133
Author: James Hession
Site type: Early Neolithic pits and a fulacht fiadh
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 490072m, N 622755m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.345358, -9.613416
Excavations were undertaken at Ballydoogan 1 and 2, Co. Sligo, on behalf of Sligo County Council, as part of Stage (iii) of the Archaeological Services Contract prior to the commencement of construction of the Sligo Western Distributor Road which extends from Ballydoogan townland to Caltragh townland in Co. Sligo.
Stage (i) test trenching along the entire route and Stage (ii) stripping, cleaning and mapping of all areas of archaeological potential were carried out between 3 and 11 November 2011 (Excavations 2011, No. 535, 11E0372). The test excavations at Ballydoogan 1 and 2 identified a series of prehistoric pits and a fulacht fiadh.
Full excavation was undertaken between 18 and 19 July 2012. Stage (iii) works comprised the excavation of two identified sites Ballydoogan 1 and Ballydoogan 2.
Ballydoogan 1 was located centrally within Field 14 on a relatively gentle south-facing slope. A total area of 48m² was exposed revealing four early Neolithic domestic waste pits. A post-medieval field boundary and associated plough furrows were also identified. An assemblage of 15 sherds, four fragments and six crumbs of early Neolithic pottery — representing at least three and possibly up to six carinated bowls — were retrieved from the excavated pits. In addition, eight lithic artefacts technologically and typologically diagnostic to the early Neolithic period were also retrieved from the excavated pits. The assemblage comprised a flint blade, a flint core, a chert blade with fine retouch, a second chert blade and five pieces of chert debitage. A radiocarbon date from the fill of one of the pits (005) returned an early Neolithic date of 3947–3782 BC.
Ballydoogan 2 was located at the southern limit of Field 14 adjacent to the townland boundary between Ballydoogan and Derrydarragh/Oakfield. A total area of 300m² was exposed, revealing a fulacht fiadh. Two phases of activity were established with the excavated archaeological features comprising a burnt mound, trough, 3 pits and displaced mound material. A post-medieval field boundary was also identified.
Radiocarbon dates returned a Middle Bronze Age date of 1513–1419 BC from burnt mound material and a Late Bronze Age date of 1114–919 BC from the fill of trough.
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