Pit

The National Monuments Service's description

In reclaimed pasture, 135m E of townland boundary with Elton, a hearth (LI040-279----) was excavated 235m to the SE. Not marked on OSi historic maps. Excavation of a ring-ditch (LI040-108----) and kiln (LI040-108002-) prior to the construction of the Bórd Gáis Éireann Curraleigh West-Limerick gas pipeline by Christine Tarbett in 1986 revealed the following; ‘Two pits lay a little over 5m west of the ring-ditch. One contained the shattered sherds of at least six different Beaker pots. The second may have been a kiln pit. The pit containing the pottery was 40cm x 35cm and survived to only 13cm in depth. The pottery recovered from it was densely packed in almost telescopic fashion and had been severely mashed by the weight of the bulldozer tracks…These pits must be regarded as having a domestic or industrial function and may therefore be unrelated to the burial ritual which occurred in association with the use of the ring-barrow.’ (Gowen 1988, 52-61; Tarbett 1987)

Compiled by: Fiona Rooney

Date of upload: 21 June 2021

References

Gowen, M. 1988 Three Irish gas pipelines: new archaeological evidence in Munster. Bray. Wordwell.