Metalworking site

The National Monuments Service's description

Situated on a low E-W ridge. Centre-line testing (04E0485) by R. O’Hara (2004) of two fields in Testing area 1 of the Dunboyne link road (R157) to the M3 (excavations.ie 2004:1198) confirmed the presence of archaeological features where magnetic susceptibility and gradiometer surveys (06R0038) by J. Nicholls (2006) had already identified numerous anomalies. The area within the road-take was completely excavated (E003023) by A. O’Connell (O’Connell and Clark 2009) who uncovered a complex of monuments dating from at least the Early Bronze Age up to the high medieval period (excavations.ie: 2005: AD5; 2006:1525).

Three bowl furnaces, one inside the inner fosse of the large enclosure at N, the others between the two fosses at SW and WNW, were recorded. The furnaces (dims 0.36m x 0.34m; D 0.06m to 0.99m x 0.96m; D 0.13m) had fills of oxidised clays and charcoal, and a sample of charcoal provided a C14 date of 565-666 cal. AD. (O'Connell 2009; O’Connell and Clark 2009, 30)
The product of the charcoal-making pit, located just inside the inner fosse of the large enclosure at NW, would have been used in metalworking, but this example is later in date than the bowl furnaces recovered. The pit (dims 3m x 1.07-1.4m; D 0.28-0.37m) had an oxidised base and was filled with alternate layers of ash and charcoal covered by three backfilled deposits. A sample of charcoal provided a C14 date of 1035-1225 cal. AD (ibid. 30-31).

See the attached image:
_1 Post-excavation plan of the large enclosure from O'Connell and Clark (2009, fig. 63)

Compiled by: Michael Moore

Date of upload: 5 November 2021

O’Connell, A. 2009 Excavations at Castlefarm: director’s first findings. In Deevy, M. and Donald Murphy 2009 Places Along the Way, 43-56. NRA Scheme Monographs: 5.

O’Connell, A. & Clark, A. 2009 M3 Clonee – North of Kells. Contract 1 Clonee – Dunshaughlin. Final report on the Archaeological Excavation of Castlefarm 1, Co. Meath. Licence: E003023. Unpublished report, Archaeological Consultancy Services

O’Hara, R. 2004 M3 Clonee- North of Kells. Contract 1 Clonee-Dunshaughlin. Archaeological Assessment at Testing Area 1, Castlefarm, County Meath. Licence: 04E0485. Unpublished report, Archaeological Consultancy Services

References

Nicholls, J. 2006 Castlefarm Testing Area 1. M3 Clonee - North of Kells Contract 1, County Meath. Archaeological Geophysical Survey. Target Archaeological Geophysics. Unpublished report No. 06/007.