County: Louth Site name: Newtownstalaban, Drogheda
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 23E0409
Author: Deirdre Murphy, Archaeological Consultancy Services Unit Ltd
Site type: No archaeology found
Period/Dating: N/A
ITM: E 710666m, N 776868m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.729713, -6.322864
Archaeological test trenching was carried out on a site at Newtownstalaban, Drogheda, Co. Louth. This was informed by geophysical survey 23R0208. A total of 22 test trenches were excavated within the site. The test trenches targeted anomalies discovered during the geophysical survey. Each trench measured 1.8m in width, and in total 984m of linear trenches were excavated. The test trenches were excavated down to the natural subsoil that comprised orange boulder clay that was sandy and stony in some parts of the site. In general topsoil measured 0.2-0.3m in depth. Numerous furrows cut into the subsoil were evident in many trenches, indicative of ploughing.
The anomalies detected in the geophysical survey were targeted and deemed geological in nature, some possibly represented changes in topsoil that did not extend to the subsoil. A suspected early field boundary that predated the Termonfeckin road was ephemeral in nature and varied between a shallow ditch to a grey loose soil with numerous roots indicative of a field boundary hedge. A parallel linear anomaly north of the field boundary was represented by a narrow (0.4m wide) stone field drain. No archaeological features or deposits were exposed or identified.
Unit 21 Boyne Business Park, Greenhills, Drogheda, Co. Louth. A92 DH99.
