House - Neolithic

The National Monuments Service's description

This habitation site is part of Eogan's Phase 1 Earlier 'Western' Neolithic Complex - Zone A (Eogan and Roche 1997, 6-7), which has been provided with a start date of 3725-3635 cal. BC and an end date of 3650-3565 cal. BC or a round date of c. 3600-3500 cal. BC with the aid of Bayesian analysis (Eogan and Cleary 2017, 39-40; Schulting et al. 2017a). Earlier Western Neolithic material was found in four areas N and E of Tomb 1C and perhaps running beneath it. Zone A is located inside the kerb of the tomb at N and SE of Tomb 14. It was in poor condition as it had been cut by the ditch of the rath (ME019-030040-). Three slot-trenches (Wth 0.27-0.3m; D 0.12-0.14m), which could not be fully exposed, enclose a subrectangular area (dims c. 9m NW-SE; c. 5.5m NE-SW). There are post-holes in two of the trenches and traces of two hearths at the centre. Radiocarbon dates of 5080 +- 20 (3975-3789 cal. BC) and 5040 +- 15 bp (3984-3784 cal. BC) were recovered from material in one of the trenches. About 60 flints including flakes and scrapers along with sherds from 20 vessels of Western Neolithic ware were recovered, mostly from the slot-trenches. (Eogan and Roche 1997, 7-17)

True location: ITM (699624, 773490)

Date of upload: 06 November 2013
Amended: 16 September 2020

See the attached plans:
_1 Cemetery plan from Knowth 6, Fig. 2:1
_2 House plan from Knowth 2, Fig. 2

References

Eogan, G. and Roche, H. 1997 Excavations at Knowth 2. Dublin. Royal Irish Academy Monographs in Archaeology.

Eogan, G. and Cleary, K. 2017 Excavations at Knowth 6: The Passage Tomb Archaeology of the Great Mound at Knowth. Royal Irish Academy, Dublin

Schulting, R., Bronk Ramsey, C., Reider, P, Eogan, G., Cleary, K., Cooney, G. and A. Sheridan 2017 Dating the Human Remains at Knowth, in Eogan 2017, 331-85.