County: Limerick Site name: Vistakon, Castletroy
Sites and Monuments Record No.: Vicinity of LI006-059--- Licence number: 15E0017
Author: Declan Moore
Site type: Monitoring - hearth
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 563358m, N 658176m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.673510, -8.541800
Monitoring was carried out over a phased basis between January and August 2015 at the site of a proposed wind turbine and other associated works for Vistakon Ireland at Castletroy, Co. Limerick. The initial works involved monitoring of six engineering test pits, this was followed by the supervision of the topsoil stripping for an access road, followed by monitoring of the platform for the crane and the foundation of the wind turbine.
Monitoring of the mechanical excavation of six engineering test pits was carried out on 5-6 January 2015. Topsoil stripping for the access road took place in July 2015. Nothing of archaeological significance was noted.
Topsoil stripping for the crane platform and the turbine foundation took place between 19 and 21 August 2015. The natural subsoil was a yellow brown clayey sand with stones throughout.
Monitoring exposed a single feature interpreted as a small hearth site located at 563285.927E,658270.375N. The feature measured 1.3m east-west x 0.5m x 0.13m in depth. There was a deeper bowl at one end and a shallow cut with a completely oxidised base at the north-west edge. The bowl measured 0.72m east-west x 0.5m x 0.13m deep and was oval in plan with sharp break of slope at the top, slightly convex or straight edges (especially along northern edge) which broke fairly sharply onto an uneven concave base that had frequent stones and pebbles protruding.
The fill was almost completely comprised of charcoal fragments, fire-reddened clay and flecking. The feature appears to represent the remains of a small hearth. Subsequent to sieving of samples insufficient material was recovered to facilitate either wood identification or dating.
Corporate House, Ballybrit Business Park, Galway
