County: Offaly Site name: Clonbeale More/Coole/Killaun/Clonoghil Lower/Ballywilliam/Lishee, Killaun Bog
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 13E0218
Author: Jane Whitaker
Site type: Peatland
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 609409m, N 706490m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.108892, -7.859479
A re-assessment field walking survey was carried out in Killaun Bog in August 2013 on behalf of Bord na Móna. Killaun Bog is located 5km east of Birr along the road to Rath village, measures 267ha in size and has been in production since 2003. The entire bog was in production during the course of the 2013 re-assessment survey.
Killaun Bog was initially fieldwalked and surveyed in 1998 by the Irish Archaeological Wetland Unit (IAWU) at which time 30 archaeological sightings were noted. At the time of the IAWU survey the entire bog was in the ownership of Bord na Móna and while the preliminary drains were in place no surface peat had been removed. The eastern portion of the bog was subsequently purchased by the wildlife section of what was at the time known as Dúchas.
The archaeological sites recorded in 1998 concentrated in the narrowest, north-eastern portion of the bog in the townland of Clonbeale More which was the area subsequently purchased by the Wildlife section of Dúchas so that it could be exchanged for a bog of scientific interest currently in the ownership of Érin Peats Ltd. Of the original 30 sites recorded, 98CBM 0014 and 15, which were recorded as possible toghers and were excavated by ADS under licence number 00E0372? and 98CBM 0013/00E0242, which was dated to between 1030-1277 cal. AD.
No sites were recorded during the 2013 re-assessment survey of the part of Killaun Bog remaining in BnM ownership.
ADS ltd, Unit 4 The Printhouse, 22-23 South Cumberland Street, Dublin 2
