County: Laois Site name: Scoil Phadraig NS, Cooltedery, Portarlington
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 17E0334
Author: Donald Murphy
Site type: Kilns, charcoal-production pits, Late Bronze Age and early medieval
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 655049m, N 711378m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.150062, -7.177041
A geophysical survey was conducted by Jon Stirland of Archaeological Consultancy Services Unit (ACSU) on 23 and 24 August 2017 under Licence 17R0141 for the proposed new school development at Canal Road, Portarlington, Co. Laois. This was followed by test trenching on 31 October 2017.
A total of eight test trenches were excavated within the site. Features were identified within two of the trenches. Two possible pits or kilns containing charcoal were identified in Trench 1 and three similar pits containing charcoal and evidence of burning were identified in Trench 2. All the features were located along a slight ridge running north-west to south-east through the field.
Within the site of the proposed development, three 10m x 10m areas were stripped of topsoil prior to the start of topsoil stripping associated with the proposed development of the new school to excavate the pit-type features and the two possible kilns identified during the earlier testing.
The appearance of the two possible kilns indicated that they may have been corn-drying kilns. The other pit-type features appear to be possible charcoal-production pits. Charcoal samples were taken from the fills of features (C003), kiln and (C005), pit. The charcoal sample from (C003) produced a date range between Cal630-720 AD (88.5%), and the charcoal sample from a deposit within (C005) produced a date range between Cal900-790BC. The date for the kiln is consistent with other early medieval dates recovered for similar cereal-drying kilns throughout Ireland. Pit (C005) dates from the Late Bronze Age and illustrates that the activity represented by the few features is not contemporary but instead indicates at least two separate phases.
After the excavation of the identified features, the remainder of the site was stripped of topsoil between 10-16 May 2018. No further archaeological features or deposits were recorded.
Archaeological Consultancy Services Unit, Unit 21 Boyne Business Park, Greenhills, Drogheda, Co Louth
