County: Down Site name: Ballygoskin, 171 Clay Road Crossgar
Sites and Monuments Record No.: vicinity of DWN024:003 Licence number: AE-21-100
Author: Eoin Halpin
Site type: No archaeology found
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 750183m, N 857067m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 54.439915, -5.684686
The proposed development of land at No. 171 Clay Road, Crossgar, Co. Down consisted of the construction of a dethatched dwelling, with associated access and services. The grant of planning permission conditioned an archaeological evaluation of the site, prior to construction commencing.
HED noted in their planning response that the adjacent rath (DOW024:003) was an example of an early medieval enclosed farmstead. These are dated c. A.D. 550-800, and are described as having associated farm buildings, such as barns, either within the enclosure or in close proximity to it.
A phase of archaeological testing was proposed, to take the form of the machine-excavation of five 30m long and 1.5m wide test trenches, three spaced equally across the footprint of the house and one each along the access route and sewage treatment area.
Testing took place on 28 July 2021. Nothing of archaeological interest was uncovered in any of the five test trenches, with topsoil coming down onto the hard, compacted natural glacial till. A large roughly circular stone-filled pit was uncovered in one of the trenches, however the fact that the stones were ‘clean’ with no soil fill and a large fragment of red brick was found at the base of the feature, strongly indicated that it was relatively modern in date and most probably agricultural in origin, and not of any archaeological significance.
AHC Ltd, 36 Ballywillwill Road, Castlewellan, Co. Down BT31 9LF
