County: Tipperary Site name: 13LIS-005 and 13LIS-038, Killoran, Moyne
Sites and Monuments Record No.: various Licence number: 13E0178
Author: Tim Coughlan
Site type: Peatland structure, stake row
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 622176m, N 666926m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.752930, -7.671500
Following an assessment of the proposed impact of an extension to the Tailings Management Facility (TMF) in Lisheen Mine, 16 archaeological sightings were recorded in June 2013 (see 13E059). A programme of excavation was carried out between July and September 2013 which resulted in the excavation of these 16 sites and a further 28 sites which were identified during the course of excavation.
The site consisted of 48 brushwood hazel stakes generally aligned north-west/south-east. The stakes were loosely set in rows of two or three, ranging from moderately dense to widely spaced, although some individual outliers to the main row were noted. The average width of the stake row is 1m, and the row extended over a distance of 17m (15m north-west/south-east and 2m north-south).
The stakes were generally in poor repair, the upper ends having been exposed on the field surface, although worked ends which had not been exposed were in better condition. The stakes were on average 0.45m long and between 18mm and 30mm in diameter. The majority of stakes had a chisel point end.
The stake row is likely to be related to other stake rows of broadly similar date identified in the vicinity, with a basic function delineating wetter areas of bog. The stake row may be part of a trackway that previously survived at a higher level before removal during peat harvesting, with only the ends of the driven stakes now surviving. The site may also relate to 13LIS06 – a very fragmentary remnant of a possible hurdle or brushwood panel located close to the north-west end of the stake row.
This site was fully resolved and no further archaeological mitigation is required.
IAC Ltd, Unit G1, Network Enterprise Park, Kilcoole, Co. Wicklow
