Fulacht fia

The National Monuments Service's description

On a SW-facing slope in low-lying terrain sloping towards the Douglas River, in a reclaimed field. Lying immediately SW of another fulacht fia (KK010-067005-) and one of a number of fulachta fia (KK010-067001- c. 100m to NW; KK010-067003- c. 100m to the NNW; KK010-067004- c. 80m to N and KK010-067005- c. 100m to the SE and KK010-067006- c. 100m to ESE) in the vicinity recorded by Prendergast (1955, 10). This fulacht fia and the adjacent fulacht fia were partially excavated Prendergast (1955, 1-3). She states that these, ‘may be described as a double site since it comprised two oval mounds and the shallow intervening space’.
A cutting was extended from the adjacent fulacht fia (KK010-067002-) and, 'extended across the [intervening] hollow into mount B [KK010-067005-]. The black layer faded out towards the edge of mound A [KK010-067002-] and did not appear again until the edge of mound B. The layer of soil was somewhat deeper in this shallow region and lay directly on the marl floor; there was no trace of a pit in the space excavated. A parallel cutting to the east linking the two mounds gave similar results, with the addition of two small pits dug into the subsoil on the verge of each mound. Each pit was found to be filled with the burnt material.
Mount B was oval like its comrade, somewhat larger but not so high. A trench across it centrally showed the same layer of burnt stones, charcoal and ashes with a good deal of tough yellow clay between it and the underlying marl. In very instance where a pit, dug into the subsoil and packed with the charred debris, was exposed in this mound, it was found that there was a heaped-up yellow-clay patch in close proximity to it. The black layer was not homogen[e]ous but graded from scorched grey stones with some ashes at top to brittle burnt broken stones and much charcoal and finally to black compressed charcoal without stones at the bottom; this stratification held good wherever this layer appeared and the stones were always of sandstone’ (ibid.). It is not visible at ground level.

Compiled by: Jean Farrelly

Date of upload: 19 December 2018

References

Prendergast, E. 1955 Pre-historic cooking places in Webbsborough district. Old Kilkenny Review 8, 1-10.