County: Dublin Site name: St Patrick's, Donabate
Sites and Monuments Record No.: DU012-005001-4 Licence number: 17E0239
Author: Rob Lynch & Jane Whitaker, IAC Ltd
Site type: Ditches, pits, metaled surface and burial
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 722405m, N 750026m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.486002, -6.155596
Testing was undertaken in lands at Turvey Avenue, Donabate, Co Dublin prior to a planning application. It follows a previous impact assessment report carried out by Faith Bailey and Brenda Fuller of IAC Ltd in April 2017 and a geophysical survey carried out by Joanna Leigh on behalf of IAC Ltd.
The proposed development area is an irregular green field site. The eastern portion of the site is within the zone of archaeological potential associated with St Patrick’s Church, tower house, graveyard and wall monuments (DU012-005001-4). Further sites proposed for inclusion into the record of monuments are located to the immediate north of the proposed development area. These consist of early medieval and medieval remains identified during an excavation in advance of the widening of a section of Turvey Avenue (licence 08E0155). Features associated with the medieval remains extend into the proposed development area.
The testing results have shown that there is considerable multi-phased archaeological activity within the central and eastern part of this site. This is in the form of four substantial ditches, up to 12 smaller ditches, several small linear features (gullies, furrows and drains), two pits, a metalled surface, two spreads and a human skeleton. The majority of the features identified in the geophysical survey were confirmed to be archaeological with the exception of the isolated anomalies in the west of the field. While dateable artefacts were not plentiful, those retrieved during the testing indicate that the features range in date from at least the early medieval to post-medieval periods.
Proposed development plans are yet to be finalised, however any development in the central and eastern potions of the site will have an adverse impact on the recorded archaeology on the site. Any proposed development in the west of the site may have localised impacts as archaeological features are more dispersed in this part of the site.
IAC Ltd, Unit G1, Network Enterprise Park, Kilcoole, Co. Wicklow
