County: Galway Site name: N59 Maam Cross to Bunnakill Stage (i)b Hand Testing – Bunnakill
Sites and Monuments Record No.: n/a Licence number: E004959
Author: Leo Morahan for TVAS (Ireland) Ltd
Site type: Road
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 501147m, N 745562m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.450847, -9.488265
Test trenching was carried out on behalf of Galway County Council and funded by Transport Infrastructure Ireland in advance of construction of the N59 Maam Cross to Bunnakill Road Project. A hand-dug test trench was excavated in a previously known but unprotected road in an area of blanket bog.
The trenches showed that the road, which appears today as a low embankment traversing the bog, is constructed of peat with a thin layer of gravel all that remains of its original surface. It would appear that small stone banks flanked the road on either side. The road is likely to be an early iteration of the main route through central Connemara to the west coast and was in use prior to the early 19th century. The exact date of construction is unknown.
The record made during the test trenching is considered sufficient and no further archaeological work is recommended.
Ahish, Ballinruan, Crusheen, Co. Clare
