2019:862 - N52 REALIGNMENT, Grange to Clontail, Meath

The author was commissioned to complete a programme of archaeological testing of three geophysical anomalies interpreted as enclosures detected in Area 5 (Castletown), Area 15 (Fringestown) and Area 20 (Clontail) along the proposed realignment of the N52 between Grange and Clontail in County Meath.

The proposed scheme is located on land situated approximately halfway between Kells and Ardee, and it formed a corridor that runs parallel to the existing N52 secondary road. The proposed scheme comprises of a new single carriageway road extending south-west/north-east from the N52 intersection with the R162 in Grange townland terminating in Clontail townland to the north of Mitchelstown Bridge. The proposed route corridor has a length (maximum west-east along the centre line) of 4.9km and covers a surface area of 28.85 hectares.

A geophysical survey of the proposed realignment of the N52 Grange to Clontail road completed in 2019 (licence number 19R0077 – Nicholls, 2019) identified a number of magnetic anomalies of archaeological potential. Three of these anomalies in Areas 5, 15 and 20 were clearly defined oval or sub-circular shapes with dimensions characteristic of enclosures or ringforts.

Archaeological testing of three sub-circular geophysical features in Area 5 (Castletown), Area 15 (Fringestown) and Area 20 (Clontail) took place in overcast weather conditions from 30 September and 3 October 2019.

In total, 25 test trenches were excavated across the three test areas. The trenches were machine-excavated using a 13-tonne backhoe excavator with a 2m-wide toothless, ditching bucket. All the trenches were deliberately sited to investigate anomalies identified in the Geophysical Survey.

In Area 5, the Castletown site, testing exposed archaeological levels in six of the eight trenches; TT5-2, TT5-3, TT5-5 all contained dark silty bands cutting through the lighter brown-greyish gravelly clay natural.  TT5-7 and TT5-8 also found variations in the colour and composition of exposed soils that may indicate the presence of an external ditch. A fragment of burnt bone was retrieved from TT5-8. Within the potential enclosure TT5-4 contained a central deposit with charcoal clumps and a possible post hole.

In Fringestown, testing of Area 15 identified archaeological features in five of the eight trenches. The ditch was noted as a silty band in trenches TT15-1, TT15-4, TT15-5, TT15-6, and TT15-8. The ditch was most apparent in TT15-4 where deposits also contained charcoal and fragments of animal bone.

Area 20 located south of Clontail Church had a deposit consistent with a ditch fill in TT20-1, TT20-6 and TT20-8; other features included a possible post-hole in TT20-3 and a pit with iron slag in TT20-7.

The results of the testing programme confirmed the findings of the Geophysical Survey. In all three test areas deposits of archaeological potential were found that roughly corresponded to the magnetometer anomalies.