County: Cork Site name: Carrigaline East
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 21E0170
Author: Bruce Sutton of Rubicon Heritage Services Ltd
Site type: Furnace pits, cremation, pits and linear features
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 575237m, N 563393m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 51.822233, -8.359211
A programme of archaeological test trenching was undertaken in association with a proposed solar farm development in the townland of Carrigaline East, Church Road, Carrigaline, Co. Cork.
The proposed development is of a 10 MW solar PV array that consists of:
• approximately 44,400 solar panels on ground-mounted steel frames.
• 2 single-storey delivery substation
• 4 single-storey inverter/transformer stations.
• underground cable ducts hardstanding area.
• boundary security fence.
• all associated ancillary development works, including site entrance and access tracks.
A programme of archaeological testing took place in two phases. A total of 29 trenches totalling 2037 linear metres were excavated during Phase (i) and archaeological deposits were identifies in two trenches. A total of eight trenches totalling 650 linear metres were excavated during Phase (ii) and archaeological deposits were identified in two of these excavated test trenches. The archaeological deposits identified included one linear feature of undetermined provenance, a possible cremation pit, a pit or possible post-hole, a slag-tapping pit with a possible associated furnace, the remains of another smaller possible furnace, two shallow pits and a north-north-west/south-south-east aligned flat-bottomed possible field boundary.
Following agreement with the County Archaeologist a mitigation strategy was put in place to avoid the cremation pit, with the remainder of the features fully excavated and recorded in December 2021.
The archaeological activity recorded at Carrigaline East is evidence of a period of industrial and agricultural activity. The archaeological activity recorded was small-scale in nature, comprising of scattered pits. Metal working debris was retrieved from two of the pits. Radiocarbon dating of these features places this activity within the Middle Iron Age.
Unit 2, Europa Business Park, Midleton, Co. Cork, P25 TV25
