Road - class 1 togher

The National Monuments Service's description

This togher was located at the SW edge of Cloonshannagh Bog and was orientated NW-SE. No other sites were recorded in this part of the bog, and the togher is never more than 250m from its boundary. It was visible at thirteen sightings on the field surface and in drain faces across sixteen production fields. The togher (Wth 0.92-1.65m; T 0.12-0.47m) can be slighter (Wth 0.77m), but it becomes more substantial (Wth 2.3-2.75m; T 0.3m) towards the SE end. It was composed of regularly laid longitudinal roundwood (diam. c. 0.03-0.25m) and brushwood elements underlain by roundwood, brushwood and occasionally plank transverses. It produced C14 dates ranging from 2460-2210 BC.

This site was excavated in 2014 (licence 14E0258). Only two of the thirteen sightings remained. The excavated site consisted of a longitudinally laid roundwood superstructure, overlaying a transversely laid roundwood substructure with smaller elements scattered between the larger timbers. The used wood species were alder, oak and a wood chip of ash. The general condition of all elements was very poor. A single worked end cut to a chisel point with multiple small concave facets was recorded and an ash wood chip indicates that wood working may have taken place on site. Three small stones were evident along the length of the track, suggesting that stone may have been used as a significant element at some point (Coughlan and Whitaker 2019).

Compiled by: Michael Moore/Ros O Maoldúin, Edited by: Femke Vleeshouwer, 15 April 2020

Date of upload: 12th April, 2011.

References

Coughlan, T & Whitaker, J 2019 Final excavation report Cloonshannagh Bog, Co Roscommon. Bord na Mona Peatland Archaeological Services 2014-2017. Unpublished report submitted to DOEHLG & BnM