2024:771 - St. Michael’s House, Raheny, Dublin, Dublin

All test trenches were excavated under constant archaeological supervision to the level of natural subsoil or 19th-century structural remains. Stratigraphy was consistent across all excavated trenches, unless earlier structural remains were encountered:

Soft mid-brown silty clay topsoil 0.2m deep overlay mixed, mottled brown clay, 0.04m deep, with inclusions of modern gravel, tarmac, cobbles, brick, stone, concrete, mortar, metal etc. (C002). This appears to represent a construction levelling deposit laid down during the late 20th century, with inclusions of material from earlier demolished structures. This overlay a mid-orangey-brown natural clay.

In Trench 1, a 0.75m wide north–south orientated wall crossed Trench 1 towards its western end (C004, 22.66m ODM). This sat within a cut and appeared to represent the remains of a wall foundation trench, with upper elements having been removed during earlier demolition works. This corresponds with the eastern wall of the north-east structure visible on historic mapping.

In the eastern half of Trench 1 were three in-situ bricks orientated north-east/south-west, and one that appeared out of alignment (C005 – 22.82m ODM). They appear to be the remnants of a surface, rather than a wall.

In Trench 2,  C006 – 22.51 m ODM was a linear cut which crossed the trench, orientated east–west, measuring 0.65m wide and 0.45m deep. The cut contained frequent stone towards the base and filled with water in the excavated section. The feature appears to be an early drain.

In Trench 3, C007, an area of modern infill was recorded at the northern end of the trench. This consisted of modern metal, concrete, carpet etc. This appears to be a dump of material during construction in the late 20th century.

In Trench 4 C009 – 22.93 m ODM was a cobbled surface which ran almost the entire length of the trench. The main area (C009a and C009c) consisted of rounded cobbles 0.1–0.2m in size. This was bisected by a north-west/south-east orientated line of flat stones (C009b), of a different colour and stone type to the cobbles. This was at the same level as the surrounding cobbled surface, with no sign of breakage that would indicate it was a wall. It appears more likely to have been a path across the wider cobbled surface. In the northern area of the trench the cobbles (C009d) became fragmentary, with only occasional cobbles remaining in situ. This surface corresponds with an open area within the 19th-century compound, and likely represents a surviving yard surface.

In Trench 5 C010 – 22.97 m ODM was a layer of brick waste and mortar which lay across the western half of the trench. This lay under tarmac in C002 and over natural C003 and had a depth of 0.2m.

A small section of intact mortared brick with lime render was visible at the eastern end of the trench (C011 – 22.57 m ODM). These were orientated north–south and extended into the trench by 0.3m. They appear to represent the remains of a brick wall.

Nothing of note was identified in Trench 6, with stratigraphy consisting solely of topsoil, C002 and natural.

The test-trenching works at St Michael’s House, Raheny, Dublin have identified the remains of earlier structural remains, likely remnants of Kilbarrack House. These elements line up with structures visible on the 6” map of 1843 (sheet DN015), 25” map of 1909 (sheet DN015-14) and Cassini map of 1940 (sheet DN015). The trenches were positioned across the northern half of the site, to align with the development, and the northern structures on historic maps appear to be ancillary buildings, rather than the main house. Demolition was likely undertaken during construction of the adult day care centre in the early 1970s, with demolition and construction materials used to level the area, forming deposit C002.

Where natural subsoil was reached there was no evidence for any activity pre-dating the 19th-century structures. All material culture identified was modern in origin.