2023:894 - Ballynahinch Castle, Galway

Archaeological excavation took place on Castle Island in Ballynahinch Lake, Ballynahinch, Co. Galway, between 29 May and 16 June 2023. The structural remains on the island consist of a late medieval tower house and an adjoining industrial building with two associated kilns. The tower house is said to have been built by the O’Flaherty’s in the first half of the 16^th century, and was probably abandoned following the decline of the O’Flahertys in the late 16^th/early17^th century. The site became the focus of development again after the Martin family acquired the lands in the late 17^th/early 18^th century. An industrial building and kilns were built on the north side of the tower house in the mid-18^th century, and the tower house was redeveloped as a summer house or island retreat in the early 19^th century.

The late medieval tower house and adjoining industrial building and kilns were subject to a programme of repair and conservation works between 2015 and 2017. These works were recorded pre- and post-conservation in a series of archaeological and architectural heritage reports compiled by Orla Scully, Maurice Hurley, Colin Rynne and Florence Hurley. A subsequent planning permit to insert new stone floors necessitated archaeological excavation within the buildings.

The interiors of the tower house, industrial building and north kiln were excavated to the 18^th/19^th-century floor levels. The floor level within the main chamber on the ground floor of the tower house consisted of three rows of small stone pads that would have carried the timber floor of the refurbished tower. Mortar floors were uncovered within the intramural passage in the east wall of the tower, the south part of the industrial building, and the north kiln. A substantial stone culvert was uncovered in the north part of the industrial building.

The excavated material consisted primarily of rubble that accumulated as the building fell into ruin following its final abandonment, which probably occurred after the Martin family lost control of the estate in the mid-19^th century. Finds from the excavation consist primarily of modern pottery, glass, and metal artefacts. Some of the more interesting finds include a green-stained bone utensil handle and a glass bottle stop. Most of the finds are thought to date to the 19^th and 20^th centuries, although some may date from the 18^th century. Although no deposits associated with the late medieval tower house were uncovered, some architectural details of the building were uncovered such as the fine pivot stones forming the threshold of the main entrance door.