County: Meath Site name: Platin Road/Avourwen, Lagavooren
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 21E0806
Author: Linda Clarke, Archaeological Consultancy Services Unit
Site type: Brozne Age pit and spread
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 708488m, N 773838m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.702953, -6.356918
Archaeological testing was carried out on this site at Platin Rd./Avourwen, Lagavooren, Drogheda, Co. Meath. Test trenches were focused on the northern part of the site. The southern part of this site was previously monitored by Archaeological Consultancy Services Unit from May to June 2007.
A total of 7 test trenches were excavated. Each trench measured 2.25m in width, and varied in length from 6-12m and in depth from 0.38-0.71m, at which point the natural subsoil was exposed. Where observed, the topsoil consisted of a loose, dark brown, silty clay with frequent inclusions of root and measured between 0.15-018m in depth. This covered a compact, mottled grey and brown silty clay, with occasional inclusions of red brick, post-medieval ceramics and very occasional oyster shell. It measured between 0.38-0.56m in depth. The natural subsoil was a firm, mottled grey and brown, silty clay with occasional flecks of orange and contained moderate amounts of small stones.
A pit (C03) was exposed in Trench 6. Cut into the natural subsoil C02, this feature was sub-circular in shape and had maximum dimensions of 1.75m by 1.5m and varied in depth from 0.8m (east) and 1m (west). It was filled with a dark black, silty clay, with frequent inclusions of charcoal, small to medium reddened stone and very occasional oxidised clay (C04), similar to a burnt mound/fulacht fiadh. This feature had a sharp break of slope at the top, with concave sides and a rounded base, and a bowl-shaped profile. The spread of burnt material (C05) was located 1.46m north-west of pit C03. It measured 1.8m by 1.7m and had a maximum thickness of 0.02m. There was no identifiable cut and this feature overlay the natural subsoil. It is most likely a dislocated part of the deposit C04. These two features were archaeologically resolved. The pit C03 and the spread C05 are likely to be contemporary features. The pit C03 was filled with burnt mound material (C04) which was identical in composition to the spread C05. It is possible that these features represent the heavily truncated and disturbed remains of a Bronze Age fulacht fiadh. It is possible that the pit C03 represented the remnants of a pot-boiling pit used for heating water.
All on site work is now complete, with no further archaeological attention required.
Unit 21, Boyne Business Park, Greenhills, Drogheda, Co. Louth
