County: Westmeath Site name: Pallasboy, Toar
Sites and Monuments Record No.: n/a Licence number: 14E0280
Author: Jane Whitaker
Site type: Road – Class 2 Togher
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 640976m, N 735485m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.367972, -7.384295
Toar Bog was initially surveyed by the Irish Archaeological Wetland Unit during the 2000 Archaeological Survey of Ireland Peatland Survey. In 2005 and 2006 33 sites were excavated by the under 25 licences by the author. A re-assessment survey of Toar Bog was carried out in 2013 and subsequently a further 19 sites were proposed for excavation in 2014 as part of the Bord na Móna Mitigation Project in the townlands of Killavally, Pallasboy, Montrath and Rathgarrett.
The find spot of WM-TOR013d was identified by GPS on 28 August 2014 and the drain face and an area measuring 3m x 3m was cleaned by hand. A single fragmentary east-west oriented brushwood was the only remaining element. It measured 3mm in diameter and 0.63m in length. It was located in moderate to well-humified sphagnum peat with frequent eriophorum and occasional calluna inclusions. A date of AD 688–888 was returned from a piece of alder roundwood sampled during the 2013 survey season.
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