2016:227 - Fornaght Strand, Creadan, Waterford

A storm in early 2016 stripped sand and sediment from the inter-tidal zone of revealing a prehistoric landscape, rich in organic remains, including the remains of possible wattle structure, a fulacht fia and a shell midden. Following an inspection of the site by the National Monuments Service of the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht a rescue excavation was undertaken.

A well-preserved rectangular wooden trough constructed of planks and posts was excavated. Two sediment deposits were excavated from the trough; the upper deposit was similar to the surrounding estuary bed. Underlying this was a layer of heat-shattered stone which most likely represents the final use of the trough. The floor of the trough was constructed of five timbers laid along the long axis. The floor timbers were laid bark-side down, except for the central board which was laid bark-side up. The sides of the trough consisted of halved logs set on edge. The remains of another poorly-preserved plank lay on top of the northern side wall. It could not be determined if this represented an original element of the side wall. The side walls were supported by five halved roundwood stakes vertically driven into the clay. Four of the stakes were positioned on the internal corners and another was placed externally on the south-west corner. A series of seven quartered roundwood wedges were recorded between the floor and side walls. The east and west walls contained two similar quartered roundwood wedges. Both of these timbers held another wedge set at a perpendicular angle, extending from the trough floor into the clay outside. A small deposit of twigs and fragments of a straw-like material were recorded beneath the floor timbers. A small amount of moss packing was also identified between the two of the floor timbers.

The eroded remains of a possible burnt mound were situated approximately 3m north-east of the exposed timber trough. The mound was composed of an oval spread of friable, burnt and blackened sandstone pieces in a matrix of black gritty gravel and beach sand with some modern shell inclusions.

The remains of a possible shell midden were exposed below the burnt stone spread. The midden material was composed entirely of small cockle shells with frequent inclusions of small twigs and some small animal bone fragments – possibly bird or fish bones. The fulacht fiadh has been assigned SMR number WA027-094.

Several other organic features were recorded on the surrounding mudflats. The features included stakes, possible wattle, and scatters of animal bones. Three possible wattle features were buried beneath c.60-100mm of fine silt. The features comprise a row of closely-set upright stakes/rods, each feature less than 1m in length. The stakes/rods have an average diameter of just 30mm. A series of more robust stakes were also recorded further to the west and south-west of the trough and these may represent post-medieval fishtraps. Tree roots and peat were also visible in places. The functions and dates of these features are not fully understood. They may represent a range of cultural activities from the prehistoric period to recent past.

Mizen Archaeology, 61 Lady's Cross, Clonakilty, Co. Cork