Sites and Monuments Record · Ireland
Fulacht fia
Drumree, County Meath, Ireland
The record
- Townland
- Drumree
- County
- Meath
- Country
- Ireland
- First-edition OS map
- Not indicated
- Latest-edition OS map
- Not indicated
- Coordinates
- 53.50520, -6.56946
- SMR number
- ME044-049001-
Slide toward Today to fade the historical sheet and see the modern map underneath.
David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries
Shown on 4 historical map sheets, the earliest the 1799 "Ireland." (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries).
This record in the National Monuments Service's Historic Environment Viewer ↗
The National Monuments Service's description
Situated in a low-lying area at the bottom of a gentle S-facing slope, with a SW-NE section of the Skane River just to the SE. Centre-line testing (04E0481) by T. O’Neill (2004) in Testing Area 19 of the M3 (excavations.ie 2004:1225) identified a spread of broken and burnt stone that was fully excavated (E003049) by H. Schweitzer in February 2006 as Drumree 1 when the remains of a fulacht fia and two kilns (ME044-049002-) were recorded (excavations.ie 2006:1551).
Two palaeo-channels ran just to the N and S of the excavated area. A spread of broken and burnt stone (dims 3.14m E-W; 2.67m N-S; max. D 0.14m) was 1.5m NW of a rectangular trough (dims 1.1m x 1.08m; max. D 0.37m) and a small pit (dims 0.45m x 0.37m; D 0.08m) filed with charcoal and cremated bone. A sample of hazel from the pit produced a C14 date of 2120-1780 cal. BC. Other spreads (dims 8m x 1.75m; T 0.18m: 2.36m x 0.63m; T 0.07: 2.2m x 2m; T 0.1m) of silty clays with heat-shattered stone were c. 5m W and NW of the trough and even small pits with burnt mound material in the excavated area are probably the last remnants of a destroyed fulacht fia. Numerous post and stake-holes were c. 2-5m to the SE of the trough but no pattern was discernible and it is not possible to relate them stratigraphically to the trough, although they are probably contemporary. Five flints were recovered from the topsoil, constituting the only artefacts recovered. (Schweitzer 2008, 3-4, 6-7)
Compiled by: Michael Moore
Date of upload: 9 December 2021
O’Neill, T. 2004 M3 Clonee - North of Kells, Contract 1 Clonee – Dunshaughlin. Final Report on Archaeological Assessment at Testing Area 19, Drumree and Johnstown, County Meath. Licence: 04E0481. Unpublished report, Archaeological Consultancy Services
References
Schweitzer, H. 2008 M3 Clonee - North of Kells, Contract 1 Clonee – Dunshaughlin. Final Report on the Archaeological Excavation of Drumree 1, Co. Meath. Licence: E003049. Unpublished report, Archaeological Consultancy Services
Nearby in the register
- Kilnunder 1 mi
- Fulacht fiaunder 1 mi
- Excavation - miscellaneousunder 1 mi
- Kilnunder 1 mi
Other entries of the same register within about three miles of this one, by straight line.