Sites and Monuments Record · Ireland
Enclosure
Castlefarm, County Meath, Ireland
The record
- Townland
- Castlefarm
- County
- Meath
- Country
- Ireland
- First-edition OS map
- Not indicated
- Latest-edition OS map
- Not indicated
- Coordinates
- 53.41490, -6.49070
- SMR number
- ME050-048005-
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
4 historical maps cover this location, the earliest the 1799 map "Ireland." (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries).
Historical maps covering this location
- 1799 · Ireland. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
- 1811 · Ireland. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
- 1830 · V.3:11-15:XV. Britisches Reich. C. Kon: Ireland. a. Prov: Leinster. Counties: 1-12 (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
- 1891 · Ireland 16 (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
This record in the National Monuments Service's Historic Environment Viewer ↗
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).
A D-shaped annexe (int. dims c. 28m E-W; c. 25m N-S) defined by a fosse was attached to the W end of the S side of the outer fosse of the large enclosure, constituting PHASE 4 in the development of the monument. Two compacted stony dumped layers in a limited area (Wth of top 1.5m) of the outer fosse of the large enclosure at one point could have formed a causeway into the annexe. However, the ditch of the annexe was re-cut with that of the outer fosse of the large enclosure in Phase 5 with the result that the original annexe ditch (Wth of top 0.5-1.75m; D 0.47-0.85m) only survives in a short section (L 9.8m) at NW, in the angle created between the Phase 3 and Phase 5 ditches. It had five fills from which some animal bone and a fragment of iron was recovered, and it is thought that the annexe might have functioned as a cattle enclosure. (O’Connell and Clark 2009, 14-15)
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. & 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.
Nearby in the register
- Ring-ditchunder 1 mi
- Burialunder 1 mi
- Enclosure - large enclosureunder 1 mi
- Metalworking siteunder 1 mi
Other entries of the same register within about three miles of this one, by straight line.