County: Kildare Site name: Alasty
Sites and Monuments Record No.: n/a Licence number: 20E0431
Author: David Bayley and Maeve Tobin
Site type: Medieval burial ground
Period/Dating: Medieval (AD 400-AD 1600)
ITM: E 693835m, N 725805m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.274264, -6.593117
Human remains were identified at Alasty during the course of archaeological monitoring of all ground works carried out for the Morrell River Flood Management Scheme under the same licence. Following consultation with an osteoarchaeologist (Maeve Tobin), the National Monuments Service and the National Museum of Ireland, it was determined that further investigation was required to identify the extent and nature of the burial remains. It was agreed that any archaeological remains impacted by the development should be fully excavated.
The subsequent excavation recorded 25 graves (containing the remains of at least 27 individuals) organised in four north–south aligned rows. The form of the cemetery suggests that it is was possibly established in the early medieval period, but a medieval origin cannot be ruled out, given that at least two individuals have been radiocarbon dated to this time. Individuals were buried in simple earth-cut east-west and west-east orientation graves, with the majority laid in an extended supine posture with hands by the side or over the pelvis. Nearly half of the investigated cemetery population are sub-adult, ranging in age from infant to adolescent. Two of the identified graves were preserved in situ as they lay outside the footprint of the proposed works.
In addition, short sections of three linear ditches and a curvilinear ditch were recorded. One of the linear ditches and the curvilinear ditch were stratigraphically earlier than the burials, being cut by two and four graves respectively. The other two ditches both contained sherds of medieval pottery and the northern feature truncated at least one grave, suggesting that they post-date the functional phase of the burial ground. A number of agricultural furrows were also recorded which truncated several graves, resulting in the loss or displacement of skeletal remains. No further artefacts were retrieved during a metal detection survey (Licence No. 22R0232) of all archaeologically disturbed soils.
It is clear that the cemetery extends beyond the limit of the current excavation area, although there is no above-ground evidence for same. It is proposed that a geophysical survey be carried out across the remainder of the field to the north and west of the excavation footprint to investigate the full extent of the cemetery.
Post-excavation processing, specialist analyses and radiocarbon dating are ongoing and will inform the final report.
IAC Archaeology, Unit G1 Network Enterprise Park, Kilcoole, Co. Wicklow
