Burial

The National Monuments Service's description

In a rath (KK019-040----) on a knoll on a N-facing slope in undulating terrain. Human remains were reported here in 1957 and the destruction of the enclosure was reported to be imminent. Excavation (Hurley 1999; 98E0219) carried out in 1998 in advance of the construction of an industrial and business park revealed a number of burials immediately below the topsoil; a total of 20 individuals were represented. All were extended supine inhumations in unprotected graves, aligned E-W, with the heads to the W. Twelve were dispersed within the SE quadrant of the main enclosure, six were closely spaced within the annexe and two cut into the fill of the fosse indicating that they were later in date. Radiocarbon dating on the human bone yielded a date of AD 652-681. The excavator suggested that as the burials were concentrated in one sector, this was not a dedicated cemetery but that other activities were carried on in the remaining area. (Cotter 2000, 123-4; Cahill and Sikora 2011, vol. 2, 486)

Compiled by: Mary Tunney

Date of upload: 13 February 2013

References

Cahill, M. and Sikora, M. (eds) 2011 Breaking ground, finding graves - reports on the excavations of burials by the National Museum of Ireland, 1927-2006, 2 vols. Dublin. Wordwell Ltd. in association with the National Museum of Ireland.

Cotter, E. 2000 Loughboy ringforts. In I. Bennett (ed.) Excavations 1998: summary accounts of archaeological excavations in Ireland, 123-4. Bray. Wordwell.

Hurley, M.F. 1999 Archaeological Excavations at Loughboy, Co. Kilkenny. Unpublished report, National Monuments Service, Dept. of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. Dublin.