Fulacht fia

The National Monuments Service's description

Located on a slight N-facing slope. Archaeological testing (04E0418) by J. Dempsey of Testing Area 4, Contract 2, prior to the construction of the M3 motorway identified three spreads of burnt mound material. The area was fully excavated (E003065) by M. Mossop as Clowanstown 2 (excavations.ie 2006:1534) in August- September 2006 when it proved to be two burnt mound spreads and a fulacht fia.

In Area C, a low irregularly-shaped spread of broken and burnt stone (dims 12m x 8m; max. T 0.08m) was just S of an oval trough (dims 2.3m x 1.2m; D 0.41m) filled by silty clay that had burnt stone and charcoal inclusions. The charcoal was dominated by ash but a sample of alder charcoal produced a C14 date of 2457-2026 cal. BC (BTEA 241289). The charred remains of oats and barley amounting to four seeds were also recovered from the fill of the trough. The burnt spread was adjacent to or covered shallow pits (dims 0.6-1.65m; D 0.12-0.33m) filled with dark, charcoal-stained silty clays with burnt stone and charcoal inclusions. The charcoal was dominated by alder, a sample of which produced a C14 date of 2576-2341 cal. BC (BETA 241288). Charred oats and barley seeds and the seeds of weeds were also present, but a sample of oats from one of the peripheral pits yielded a date of 937-1213 cal. AD (BETA 241293), which is probably contaminated. About 7m W was a second lighter spread of dark grey silty clay with charcoal inclusions (dims 7.5m x 7m; T 0.05m), some of which was incorporated into tree-boles (diam. c. 1.1m) with silty clays at their bases. A sample of willow charcoal from a tree-bole provided a C14 date of 3948-3661 cal. BC (BETA 241292), and probably represents the original Neolithic land clearance. Few artefacts were recovered but they include a convex and a concave flint scrapers. (Mossop and Ruddle 2008, 4-6)

Compiled by: Michael Moore

Date of upload: 20 April, 2022

References

Dempsey, J. 2004 M3 Clonee - North of Kells, Contract 2 Dunshaughlin - Navan. Report on the Archaeological Assessment at Testing Area 4, Clowanstown, Co. Meath. Licence: 04E0418. Unpublished report, Archaeological Consultancy Services

Mossop, M. & Ruddle, E. 2008 M3 Clonee - North of Kells, Contract 2 Dunshaughlin - Navan. Final Report on the Archaeological Excavation of Clowanstown 2, Co. Meath. Licence: E003065. Unpublished report, Archaeological Consultancy Services