2019:095 - Woodbrook, Dublin

Testing took place at Woodbrook, Shankill, Co. Dublin which is within the townlands of Cork Little and Shanganagh, to study the impact, if any, on the archaeological and historical resource of a proposed residential development. The test trenches targeted the results of a geophysics report (18R0223) and the open areas within the development.

Testing identified 17 archaeological areas.

Archaeological Area 1 consists of a 32m diameter enclosure ditch, with three fills. The ditch varied in width from 2.5-3.3m and in depth from 0.68-0.86m. Six possible pits were also recorded, all located to the north and north-west of the enclosure. No internal features were identified during the course of the assessment but a large sub-oval pit cuts the ditch to the east. Two artefacts were recovered from the enclosure. Find 1, a flint lithic, was uncovered from the tertiary deposit of the ditch while Find 2 consists of a sherd of Bronze Age pottery recovered from the secondary fill of the ditch.

Archaeological Area 2 consists of a number of ditch features that may represent two concentric enclosure ditches, and two associated linear features to the south of this possible enclosure. A slot excavated in the inner possible enclosure revealed a human skull lying on its right side, with a west–east orientation. Preliminary examination of the fragments suggests the remains are of a mature (late adolescent or adult) male. At this stage of the planning process it was deemed prudent to preserve these remains in situ, pending the final decision on the scale of development to take place here.

Archaeological Area 3 consists of two ring ditch enclosures and four linear features, one of which cuts through a pit, and two other pits. Both ring ditches contain sandy clay deposits to a maximum depth of 0.5m. To the north of the ring ditches is a shallow linear feature cutting through a truncated pit. North of this three north-west/south-east running linear features consisting of narrow V-shaped cuts are filled with charcoal-rich stony clay. It is possible that these features are agricultural furrows, showing evidence of disturbance to a possible burnt mound feature. To the east two pits, a sub-circular pit and a sub-rectangular pit, are both filled with deposits of charcoal-flecked clay.

Archaeological Area 4 comprises three linear features and a truncated sub-oval pit. The three linear features are broad (1.7-2m wide), and shallow (0.25-0.34m deep) filled with charcoal-flecked clay deposits.

Archaeological Areas 5, 6, 7 and 8 all represent small areas containing relatively isolated remains of archaeological potential.
- AA 5 consists of two pits filled with silty sand deposits with frequent charcoal-flecked inclusions
- AA 6 consists of three sub-circular pits with dark black charcoal-rich fills and a V-shaped linear feature filled with a charcoal-flecked silty clay.
- AA 7 comprises two pits: a large sub-circular pit filled with charcoal-flecked silty clay and an adjacent small sub-oval pit filled with burnt clay.
- AA 8 consists of two irregularly shaped adjacent shallow pits filled with burnt clay and charcoal-rich deposits.

Archaeological Area 9 consists of two ditch features that are tentatively suggested as archaeological in origin, owing to their scale and location, in close proximity to AA 1 (30m to the east). These wide ditches (1.1-1.9m) run perpendicular to each other and are filled brown sandy clay deposits with frequent decayed stone inclusions.

Archaeological Areas 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16 comprise single pit or hearth features located at least 50m from any other archaeological area.

- AA 10 comprises an irregular pit filled with red heat-affected clay.
- AA 11 consists of shallow sub-oval pit with charcoal-rich clay.
- AA 12 comprises a sub-rectangular pit with red heat-affected clay.
- AA 13 contains a sub-oval pit filled with three deposits including two heat-affected clay deposits, separated by a lens of charcoal.
- AA 14 consists of a sub-oval pit filled with a grey, occasional charcoal-flecked clay.
- AA 15 contains a hearth feature
- AA 16 consists of a shallow sub-oval pit filled with a dark brown stony sandy clay.

Archaeological Area 17 comprises the remains of a well, a back-filled well and associated drainage features of limited archaeological potential. The historic well consists of a north-east/south-west running limestone and mortar wall, along the north of a circular mortar bonded, red-brick opening, damaged to the south and south-east. The back-filled well contained three deposits of back-filled material including brown clay and stone, stone and mortar dump and historic topsoil. To the north a north-west/south-east running stone capped culvert is noted at a depth of 1.2m within a straight sided linear trench. This culvert likely meets and corresponds with a north–south running linear feature of similar composition to the south. These features are of limited archaeological potential and correspond with post-medieval drainage works.

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