2019:459 - ROWLESTOWN EAST, Dublin

The site at Rowlestown East, North County Dublin consists of three green fields to the west of a junction between Church Road and a local access road known as Céide Bhaile an Rólaigh. The nearest archaeological monuments include a watermill (DU011-057001) and a church and graveyard Killossory (DU011-005001-& DU011-005002-) located 500m to the west-south-west. From a review of historic mapping and aerial imagery the fields have been used both as arable and pastureland. Fronting onto the roadside in fields 1 and 3 are two boarded-up properties. These former houses and sheds do not appear on historic mapping. The proposed development will comprise the construction of 168 dwelling-house units and associated services and infrastructure and soft landscaping area to the road. Given the scale of the development a cultural heritage assessment (Moore Group, 2017) recommended that the site should be subject to a programme of test excavation under licence at locations chosen by the archaeologist. In compliance, nine test trenches were excavated on 25 and 26 February 2019 to natural levels. In general, the stratigraphy comprised a mid-brown, silty clay topsoil overlying a compact orange brown natural clay with patches of yellowish silty clays. The plough soil averaged 0.4m with a maximum depth of 0.5m in places. Nothing of archaeological significance was noted.