2014:269 - Rathdrum, Daingean South Bog, Offaly

Daingean South Bog was surveyed by the Irish Archaeological Wetland Unit (IAWU) during the 2001 Archaeological Survey of Ireland Peatland Survey. In 2004 seven sites were excavated by Sinclair Turrell as part of the Bord na Móna Mitigation Project. A Re-Assessment survey was carried out on behalf of Bord na Móna in 2013 by the author under licence 13E0230 and subsequently twelve sites were excavated in August 2014 by IAC Ltd during the 2014-2017 BnM Mitigation Project.
A cutting 2m x 6m, which contained the entire width of the site, was excavated at sighting OF-DAS008b. The overlying peat was a maximum of 0.27m in depth and consisted of moderately humified sphagnum peat with frequent modern herbaceous roots, occasional patches of eriophorum and woody detritus. The excavated site consisted of two planks laid end to end, oriented north-west/south-east, that measured 0.28–0.36m in width and 1.9–2.83m in length. Both planks were in poor condition, soft with fibrous roots throughout the wood. Both contained well-defined but poorly preserved mortice holes at their northern extents. This site was dated to AD 538–650. The underlying peat was moderately humified sphagnum pool peat with occasional calluna inclusions. From examination of the original IAWU survey records (IAWU, 2002) and ADS Ltd excavation reports, it is considered likely that the site recorded in 2013 as OF-DAS008a-b was part of a site recorded in 2001 during the IAWU survey as OF-RDM047 and subsequently excavated by ADS Ltd in 2005 under licence number 05E0557 which was dendrochronologically dated to AD 547±9.

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