2016:150 - Clonard or Folkstown Great, Balbriggan, Dublin

Plan of the site with prehistoric features highlighted in red, prehistoric organic features in yellow and medieval features in blue

A programme of monitoring of groundworks was carried out on the site of a proposed school in Clonard or Folkstown Great townland, Balbriggan in December 2015. Previous testing on the site (Licence No. 15E507) was carried out by the author and identified a number of features of archaeological potential. The monitoring exposed a number of areas of archaeology across the site, which were subsequently excavated from January-March 2016. The archaeology on the site was divided into five areas for the purposes of the excavation.

A number of features were identified on the site, some of which were indicative of Bronze Age activity. The site was at the edge of a wetland environment, with a slight rise in the central portion of the site and marshy ground to the north and south-east, and a stream to the south. The ground sloped up to the north-west.

Towards the centre of the site a truncated penannular enclosure was identified with a causeway of undug material indicating an opening to the south-east. The enclosure measured 23.08m in length internally and 18.46m in width, with the ditch ranging from 0.3-1.05m in width and 0.05-0.94m in depth. Probable Late Bronze Age pottery, a possible clay mould and a grinding stone were retrieved from the fills of the enclosure ditch. Five post-holes along the base of the ditch suggested there may have been a fence or palisade running around the enclosure within the ditch. Only one feature was identified within the enclosure, a pit that had been truncated by the enclosure ditch. A cremation pit measuring 1.4m x 0.9m and 0.2m in depth was uncovered to the south-east of the entrance. It contained tiny fragments of possible prehistoric pottery and broken tubular copper-alloy beads along with a small quantity of cremated bone.

To the south-west of the enclosure the northern portion of a ring barrow was identified. This had an internal diameter of 7.2m. Slumping along the internal and external sides of the ditch suggested that there originally would have been an internal mound and external bank. The ditch measured 1.25-1.45m in width and 0.87-1.2m in depth. No features were identified within the area enclosed by the ditch. A number of large water-rolled boulders were found within the fill of the ditch and may originally have formed above-ground components of the monument. Two small water-rolled quartz pebbles were retrieved from the fills of the barrow as well as a small discrete deposit of cremated bone from the upper fills. An excavation was carried out by Gill McLoughlin (15E0558, 2015:165) on the site immediately to the south dealing with the southern portion of the barrow.

Two near-parallel gullies c. 4m apart identified to the west of the site appear to have defined a routeway. The orientation of the routeway suggests it may have been related to the enclosure and barrow, both of which would have been visible from the routeway. An entrance gap measuring 7.58m was identified in the eastern gully leading to the east. The distance between the gullies increased at the entrance gap to 7.2m. The gullies were 0.45-0.9m in width and 0.1-0.45m in depth and were filled with numerous lenses of sand, silt, gravel and clay, appearing to have filled-in naturally in an ordered fashion. A number of pits and post-holes on the higher ground to the west of the gullies may be the remains of a structure, however this part of the site was quite truncated and too little survived to say this with certainty. Two charcoal-production pits were also identified to the west.

A small formerly wood-lined fulacht fiadh trough measuring 2.8m in length, 1.35m in width and 0.23m in depth was identified to the south-east of the site. Four stake-holes were present along one side of the trough with a fifth identified along the opposite side indicating the trough had been lined. The trough was associated with a small spread of burnt stone and charcoal suggesting the feature had not been used for any great amount of time. It was truncated by a post-medieval field drain.

An extensive area of naturally organic-filled depressions was uncovered to the north of the site. This appears to have formed between the low rise in the centre of the field and the slope up the hill to the north. This area of poor drainage appears to have been present for a significant amount of time given the location of fulachtaí fiadh in its vicinity. An environmental core has been taken from the material, which will be dated. It is possible that the environmental core will be able to give us valuable information on the surrounding land usage and human intervention in the area. The truncated remains of a burnt spread, previously identified during the testing programme, was identified to the south of this part of the site. The spread measured 4.5m x 3.5m and was only 0.12m in maximum depth.

It is possible that all of these features were contemporary. We know that the barrow, penannular enclosure and cremation pit are likely to date to the Late Bronze Age based on the finds assemblage and a date retrieved from a cremation uncovered within the southern portion of the barrow (Gill McLoughlin pers. comm.) The other features could also potentially date to this period and it is possible that the site represents part of the lands of a localised kin-group in the Late Bronze Age, with a small ceremonial enclosure and burial area in one part of the site and resource exploitation of the wetland environment also being carried out. The avenue may have connected this area with the main settlement or other nearby settlements, possibly linking a localised kin-group with the larger community.

The stream to the south of the site divides the townlands of Clogheder and Clonard or Folkstown Great. It is possible that Clogheder, formerly known as Cloghrudduf or Cloghruddery, was associated with Balruddery to the south, so the stream currently forming the townland boundary may have formed the boundary between the manors of Bremore and Balruddery. The presence of the barrow in close proximity to the stream may also indicate that this boundary was in existence in the prehistoric period.

To the north-east of the site a medieval ditch with evidence for in situ metalworking was identified. During this period this ditch is likely to have been within or at least influenced by the manor of Bremore near the coast to the east. The ditch was 1.5-1.77m in width and 0.67-0.75m in depth. The smithing activity taking place within the ditch was coal-fired. Coal-fired smithing is known from Anglo-Norman Wales, though is unusual in Ireland at this time. We are obtaining a date from the ditch to confirm the date of the metalworking activity. A number of other ditches were identified across the site that may relate to the subdivision or lands and drainage improvements at this time.

Numerous post-medieval field drains were identified across the site associated with the post-medieval field system, depicted on the First Edition Ordnance Survey map.

Three areas of archaeology on the site were preserved in situ. These include: the medieval ditches and metalled surface running perpendicular to the ditch with the metalworking activity, which was identified during the testing programme; an area with a number of ditches to the south of the ditch with the metalworking activity, possibly part of the same phase of land division; and the area to the south of the townland boundary within Clogheder townland, where Ruth Elliott previously identified two areas of possible prehistoric activity (2007:422, Areas 21.1 and 21.2). Additional topsoil was placed over these areas.

Both ends of the prehistoric avenue or routeway to the west and the northern end of the medieval ditch to the north-east continued beyond the limit of excavation.

The majority of the post-excavation work on the site is now complete. At present we are awaiting a range of radiocarbon dates for the site, which will add to the phasing of the site. The preliminary report for the site can be downloaded from www.archaeologyplan.com/projects-3/

Aileach Archaeology, on behalf of Archaeology Plan, 32 Fitzwilliam Place, Dublin 2