County: Wicklow Site name: Kindlestown Upper
Sites and Monuments Record No.: WI008-017 Licence number: 18E0586
Author: Faith Bailey, IAC Ltd
Site type: Kiln
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 727922m, N 711743m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.140835, -6.087949
A programme of test trenching was carried out at the site of a proposed residential development at Delgany and Kindlestown Upper, Co. Wicklow. Testing was undertaken in response to a request for further information by Wicklow County Council (Planning Ref.: 18/678).
The site is situated on relatively high ground with views of the Wicklow Mountains (Sugarloaf) to the west and north-west and the coastal plains and sea to the east. Killincarrig Village is situated c. 650m to the south-east and Delgany Village is located further away, c. 750m to the south-south-west. Recent excavations to the east-south-east and south-east in Killincarrig and Charlesland townlands have identified significant evidence for prehistoric settlement in the wider area. This locality also possessed strategic importance during the medieval and post-medieval periods with the occupation of Kindlestown Castle (WI008-017/001, Nat. Mon. 323, RPS 08-21) c. 30m to the north of the site. With the exception of this monument there are no other recorded monuments known in the immediate proximity of the proposed development area.
The proposed development will not have a negative impact on Kindlestown Castle. The surrounding ditch mentioned in literary sources was not identified during testing and given the presumed dimensions of this feature, it is highly unlikely to extend in to the site boundary. A previously unidentified archaeological feature consisting of a figure-of-8 shaped kiln was identified in Trench 2. Groundworks associated with the proposed development may have a negative impact on this feature as it is located partially within an internal access road and so would be disturbed by construction activities in this area.
A review of cartographic and literary sources did not clarify whether the pond, identified on historic maps from the 1840s onwards, was a man-made feature of medieval origin. However, testing did reveal the ground previously sloped more steeply towards the pond, suggesting the pond may have formed due to its location in an area of low-lying ground fed by a spring or groundwater. The pond will be impacted upon by the construction of housing and landscaping for gardens which will involve the draining and infilling of the feature.
Due to the proximity of Kindlestown Castle to the site, and the constraints during the testing phase (overhead lines and presence of the tennis court), it was recommended that all ground disturbances across the site associated with the proposed development be monitored.
Due to the nature and extent of the identified archaeological feature at the site, it was recommended that the kiln be fully excavated.
It was also recommended that, following the draining of the pond, hand auger environmental samples be taken from the base and analysed in an attempt to determine the origin of the feature. Further recording, such as photographic and written record, may be required prior to construction.
IAC Ltd, Unit G1, Network Enterprise Park, Kilcoole, Wicklow
