County: Cork Site name: Gortnahown, Junction 13 M8, Mitchelstown
Sites and Monuments Record No.: n/a Licence number: 13E0291
Author: Tim Coughlan
Site type: burnt mounds and charcoal spreads
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 580701m, N 609654m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.238280, -8.282560
A program of archaeological testing was carried out at the site of a a proposed motorway service station located within the townland of Gortnahown, to the west of Junction 13 on the M8 motorway, Co. Cork. It followed on from a geophysical survey, which was carried out on the site by Joanna Leigh under licence 13R0091.
The closest recorded site is a fulacht fiadh (CO019-071), located to the immediate north-west of the site. There are a further four recorded sites located within 1km of the proposed development area. Seven archaeological sites were subject to excavation within the footprint of the M8 junction, dating from the Neolithic through to the medieval period. Three of these areas were located to the immediate east of the proposed development area (Gortnahown 2 Areas 3 and 4, Gortnahown 1, Area 2).
The geophysical survey revealed a number of potential archaeological features to the immediate north and west-north-west of the development area. These were interpreted as potentially representing burnt mound sites. Additional possible pits and positive trends were identified within the area. All potential archaeological features were targeted during the programme of test trenching.
Despite the proliferation of archaeological sites to the immediate east, which were excavated prior to the constriction of the motorway, only three areas of archaeological potential were identified during the assessment. A curvilinear feature was identified in the northern part of the development area, within Trench 9. This did not appear on the geophysical survey and, whilst an archaeological interpretation is not definite, it remains a possibility (AAP 1). A spread of material containing charcoal was identified in the western end of Trench 16, within the north-west corner of the proposed development area (AAP 2). This may relate to a possible burnt mound that was identified during the geophysical survey to the immediate north-east of the development area. In the south-west corner of the site, a further burnt mound spread was identified within Trenches 27 and 30 (AAP 3).
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