County: Dublin Site name: 20-28 Bow Street, Smithfield, Dublin
Sites and Monuments Record No.: Within environs of DU018:020--- (Dublin City) Licence number: 20E0052
Author: Eoin M Halpin
Site type: Urban - no archaeology found
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 714800m, N 734585m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.349012, -6.275751
An initial phase of pre-development archaeological testing took place on 23 June 2020. This took the form of two machine dug trenches. The first, some 8m long running roughly north–south through the centre of the proposed development, and the second some 5m long, running west from the south end of Trench 1. Both trenches were aligned approximately along the line of proposed piles.
The current ground level is at c. 6.5m OD. Testing showed that the upper 0.8m of the trench consisted of modern stone and gravel fill associated with the tarmacadam car park surface. Below this was a mixed layer of ‘made ground’ up to 0.5m in depth. Natural gravels were noted at 3.9m OD, some 2.6m below present ground surface, but as this was substantially below the projected base of the formation level associated with the proposed development, this deposit was only exposed at the north end of Trench 1.
Further attendance on 9 July 2020 monitored the removal of material from around the piles; this confirmed the results from the testing which showed that the upper 1m of material on site consisted of either modern stone fill, associated with the build prior to the construction of the car park, or modern disturbed ‘made ground’.
It is important to note that the ground between the piles will remain undisturbed, with only the ground along the lines of the piles disturbed. Consequently the vast majority of the site and any associated archaeological deposits will be preserved in situ.
Nothing of archaeological significance was noted in either the testing or the subsequent monitoring.
AHC Ltd, 36 Ballywillwill Road, Castlewellan, Co Down BT31 9LF
