Ring-ditch

The National Monuments Service's description

Located on a fairly level landscape. A gradiometer survey (17R0229) by Target Archaeological Geophysics of an extensive development area of c. 75 ha in the townlands of Loughsallagh, Portan, and Gunnocks, identified numerous anomalies of potential archaeological interest. Targeted archaeological testing (18E0013) by T. Coughlan in 2018 and M. Piera (19E0211) in 2019 was able to demonstrate that many of these were of fairly modern agricultural origin. However, sixteen locations were set aside for further investigation, which was undertaken by J. Whittaker under the licence (18E0013) between the beginning of April and the end of July 2019, and all but four of these proved to be of archaeological interest.

Situated in the N-S valley of the meandering Tolka River, with the stream c. 70m to the W. The E part of a ring-ditch (int. diam. 10.83m N-S) defined by a single fosse (Wth of top 1.2-1.3m; D 0.2-0.3m) had three fills of silty or sandy clay with flecks of charcoal and burnt bone, which are only missing from the mottled orange-grey sandy clay that was confined to the N end of the of the fosse where it peters out. No artefacts were recovered and there were no concentrations of burnt bone. The trough from a fulacht fia (ME050-049001-) is c. 30m to the N. (Whitaker 2020, 18-20, Site 6)

Compiled by: Michael Moore

Date of upload: 9 November 2021

References

Piera, M. 2019 Final Report on Archaeological Assessment at CLN 5/6 Clonee, Loughsallagh, Portan & Gunnocks, Co. Meath. Licence: 19E0211. Unpublished report, Irish Archaeological Consultancy

Whitaker, J. 2020 Preliminary Report on Archaeological Excavations at CLN 5/6 Clonee, Loughsallagh, Portan and Gunnocks, County Meath. Licence: 18E0013. Unpublished report, Irish Archaeological Consultancy

Coughlan, T. 2018 Archaeological Assessment at Clonee Phase 2, Loughsallagh, Portan & Gunnocks, Co. Meath. Licence: 18E0013. Unpublished report, Irish Archaeological Consultancy