County: Dublin Site name: Barberstown and Barnhill townlands, Hansfield Special Development Zone 7, Dublin 15
Sites and Monuments Record No.: n/a Licence number: 19E0558
Author: Liam Coen c/o Archer Heritage Planning
Site type: Testing, burnt mounds/fulachta fia
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 703570m, N 738760m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.388836, -6.442982
The site was located in Barberstown and Barnhill townlands, Hansfield Special Development Zone 7, Dublin 15 and comprises two fields previously in agricultural use but only the westernmost remaining substantially undisturbed. Due to recent construction works in the adjacent areas, large parts of the site, particularly to the east, were unsuitable for test excavations as they had been heavily disturbed and were being used to store construction materials.
Seven test trenches were excavated by 16-tonne tracked excavator with a 2.1m grading bucket. Topsoil was generally 0.2-0.4m in depth in the western field while being almost entirely absent in the eastern field. Subsoil was mixed brown, grey and yellow boulder clay. Several rubble-filled land-drains were identified in the course of testing and one area of archaeological interest was identified in Barnhill townland.
A possible trough measuring 2.36m north-east/south-west x 1.75m x 0.4m in depth contained a single fill, a friable dark grey stoney (c. 50% heat-affected) silty clay. To the north-east lay an irregularly-shaped deposit measuring 1.31m north-east/south-west x 1.25m. To the north-east again lay a linear feature measuring 2.96m north-east/south-west x 0.68m in average width. This feature continued outside the cutting to the north-east. To the north again lay another irregularly-shaped burnt mound deposit measuring 3.57m north-south x 3.86m with a depth of 0.1m. This also continued to the north outside of the cutting where it was overlain by a topsoil mound. To the east of this lay another irregularly-shaped burnt mound deposit measuring 5.05m north-west/south-east x 3.75m. This also continued outside the cutting to the east and north. Within 9m to the east lay two small irregularly-shaped burnt mound deposits measuring 0.87m north-west/south-east x 0.59m and 0.49m north-south x 0.43m. The archaeological deposits were covered with plastic sheeting and the trenches reinstated.
Archer Heritage Planning, 8 Beat Centre, Stephenstown, Balbriggan, Co. Dublin.
