County: Waterford Site name: Thompson's Lane, Dungarvan
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: C818; E4876
Author: Tony Cummins
Site type: Vicinity of castle
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 626287m, N 793118m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.886810, -7.600146
Test trenching was undertaken on the footprint of a proposed gas tank and a connection pipe within a public car park on Thompson’s Lane. The site is located outside the west wall of Dungarvan Castle (WA031-040001-), a National Monument in State Ownership (No. 659). The property containing the proposed tank was a brown field site until 2013 when the car park, which includes a paved area extending to the base of the castle wall, was constructed. The 2013 ground works were monitored by Eamonn Cotter under Ministerial Consent (C580; E4484) and nothing of archaeological significance was uncovered. The NMS was consulted in relation to the proposed gas tank and advised that an application for a Ministerial Consent for test trenching was required due to the proximity of the site to the castle. The gas tank will comprise a semi-buried feature set within a pit measuring 3m north-south by 5m and 1m deep while the 2.5m long service pipe will be inserted within a trench measuring 0.5m wide by 0.5m deep.
Testing revealed a modern stone layer associated with the creation of the car park that extended 0.8m below existing ground level. This overlay a 0.2m deep brown clay layer containing occasional inclusions of loose mortar and broken brick fragments. The surface of a soft layer of loose mortar and sand was encountered at the base of the test trench. Hand troweling revealed the presence of occasional brick fragments on its surface and this layer will be left in situ under the gas tank.
Unit 3A Westpoint Trade Centre, Ballincollig, Co. Cork.
