2021:314 - Delgany, Wicklow

A total of 100 linear meters of open-cut trench was excavated to accommodate a replacement watermain along the Glen Road in Delgany. The trench was dug by a 13ton machine with a flat 2ft grading bucket to a depth of 1.3m. This was to accommodate the laying of a blue plastic 150mm UPVC pipe. Originally the pipe was to be laid through the village of Delgany through the Zone of Notification for WI013-004001- (Church), WI013-004002- (Graveyard), WI013-004003- (Cross-High cross) and WI013-004004- (Font). The next nearest monument (WI013-065----, Bullaun stone) is located approximately 30m south of the works. It, however, transpired that there was an existing watermain already laid there in recent years and so this phase of works connected into this existing watermain. Given the historical significance of the area a 100m stretch of watermain was monitored.

Monitoring was carried out over the course of two days on the 9^th and 10^th August 2021. The trench was excavated to a uniform depth of 1.3m below the present road surface and measured 0.3m in width. The stratigraphy comprised 0.1m road surface below which was a road make-up layer 0.2m in depth which overlay a mid-orange brown boulder clay which was disturbed and contained three sherds of Black Ware, one sherd of unglazed Red Earthenware, and an unidentified sherd of glazed earthenware, all eighteenth/nineteenth century in date as was a pontil fragment from a wine bottle. This layer was 0.4m in depth and natural ground, a compact mid-orange brown silty clay, was exposed at 0.6m below ground level. There was no evidence of an old topsoil layer in section and it would appear that the top 0.7m of the ground was disturbed from road construction and this may have removed any shallow archaeological features present, however deep ditches would have survived.

No finds of any archaeological or historic significance were uncovered during monitoring of the groundworks.

Unit 10 Riverside Business Centre Tinahely Co. Wicklow