County: Offaly Site name: Ballykilmurry and Ballyduff, Tullamore
Sites and Monuments Record No.: n/a Licence number: 24E1120
Author: Maeve McCormick
Site type: Agricultural features
Period/Dating: N/A
ITM: E 630799m, N 727185m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.294070, -7.538024
Test excavations took place between 4 and 7 November 2024 at the Roadstone Quarry, Ballykilmurry and Ballyduff, Co Offaly. A total of 30 trenches totalling 3100 linear metres were excavated investigating geophysical anomalies from an earlier assessment (24R0409). Eleven geophysical anomalies (numbered 2 to 12) were flagged across the site as possible archaeological features. Trenches were placed to investigate the anomalies and to generally assess the site.
The topsoil (C1) comprised a light grey-brown friable silty clay plough soil varying in depth from 0.3-0.6m, shallow at the top of the hills and deeper at the base. The subsoil across the site comprised of yellow clay with narrow bands and large patches of sand, gravel, stones and/or a mix of them. In places, the border between the clay and the gravel or sand was very abrupt.
The test excavation uncovered six modern field boundaries (C3, C4, C12, C13, C18 & C19). One of the field boundary ditches (C4) also represents the townland boundary between Ballykillmurry and Ballyduff. This ditch crossed two trenches (Tr14 & 18). These boundaries were noted on the geophysical survey and can be seen on aerial photography up until the 2006-2012 Osi (now Tailte Éireann) photograph when the fields were merged; the Ballykilmurry/Ballyduff townland boundary was levelled c.1995 and no longer exists above ground level in the application area. Ten agricultural furrows or shallow ditches were also recorded across the site (C6, C7, C8, C9, C10, C11, C14, C15, C16 & C17). Many of these were recorded in the geophysical survey as linear anomalies.
Archaeological testing of the 11 possible archaeological features flagged in the geophysical survey proved them be non-archaeological variations in subsoil. In these locations the subsoil variation was very abrupt and distinct, with narrow bands or large patches of sand, gravel or stone, which would have led to the geophysical reading. An additional three trenches (Trench 28, 29 & 30) were added to further investigate the Geophysical Anomalies No.5 & 6. These were again proven to be natural subsoil variations.
Excavation revealed no evidence of the RMP (OF016-013---- Designed landscape feature) located within the subject area.
Nothing of archaeological significance was recorded during the Test Excavation.
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