Fulacht fia

The National Monuments Service's description

Situated on a slight N-facing slope that is in a hollow on an undulating landscape. Archaeological testing (04E0914) by S. Delaney (2005) at Testing Area 13 of Contract 4 of the M3 motorway identified (excavations.ie 2004:1306) a spread of burnt stone material on the N52 Kells link-road that was completely excavated (E003153) by J. Kyle as Newrath Little 3 in March 2007 (excavations.ie 2007:1357). A rectangular trough (dims 2.03m x c. 1.56m; D 0.32m) with a flat base and a posthole at each corner had the imprint of a plank in the base. It was filled with a grey black sandy silt with burnt stone. A sample of alder charcoal from the fill returned a C14 date of 1188-937 cal. BC (UBA 11098). There were four adjacent pits (dims 0.98x 0.53m; D 0.08m to 2.32m x 1.1m; D 0.3m) with fills of burnt mound material but none is likely to have functioned as a trough. A water channel (Wth 0.7m; D 0.29m; L 7.6m plus) begins immediately N of the trough and extends beyond the excavation to the E. None of the burnt mound survives, and the area is cut by an E-W ditch c. 1m S of the trough and by a N-S narrow drain just W of it. (Kyle 2010)

See the attached plan from Kyle (2010, fig. 5)

Compiled by: Michael Moore

Date of upload: 10 March 2022

References

Delaney, S. 2005 M3 Clonee-North of Kells; Contract 4, Navan - Kells and Kells Bypass. Report on Archaeological Assessment at Testing Area 12 in Rockfield and Town Parks, County Meath. Licence: 04E0915. Unpublished report, Irish Archaeological Consultancy

Kyle, J. 2010 M3 Clonee – North of Kells, Contract 4, Navan to Kells and Kells Bypass. Final Report on Newrath Little 3, Co. Meath. Licence: E003153. Unpublished report, Irish Archaeological Consultancy