2025:328 - Clonshagh, Dublin

Pre-planning testing was carried out at Clonshagh townland, Belcamp, Dublin 17, over four days from 28/07/25. Two trenches were excavated, targeting crop marks visible on aerial imagery of the site, one of which is recorded as a ring ditch (DU014-128, Area B).

In Area A two small ditches were identified in Trench 1 and appeared to correspond with an enclosure present on the aerial imagery. The two ditches were very similar in profile and fill and they appear to represent the same enclosing feature, measuring 0.85-0.9m wide and 0.39-0.43m deep. No evidence was found in the trench for a double ditch and given the very clear aerial image the reason for this is not apparent. If the two ditches identified in the trench do represent a circular ditched enclosure, it would measure approximately 10m in internal diameter. The fills were largely sterile, with the exception of rare charcoal flecks towards the base in one of the excavated sections. No dateable artefacts were recovered from the fills of these features and while their archaeological nature is not absolutely clear from the excavated sections, their discovery in the trench appears to support the presence of the enclosure indicated in the aerial imagery.

In Area B the enclosure indicated on the aerial image, corresponding with SMR site DU014-128, was identified in two places in the trench, and the plan outline and nature of the fills left no doubt that they belonged to the same feature. The ditch was 3.3m wide and 1.6m deep and at least six different fills were identified in the hand-excavated test slot. Tiny and poorly preserved fragments of burnt and unburnt bone, snail shells and wood fragments were noted in several of the fills. No dateable artefacts were recovered from any of the fills but there is no doubt as to the archaeological nature of this feature.