House - medieval

The National Monuments Service's description

Excavation in 1996 fronting onto the E side of Friar Street revealed significant archaeological deposits which appear to survive in situ (O'Donovan 1997, 100). The presence of medieval pottery in association with organic deposits, possibly clay floors and burning, is suggestive of medieval domestic activity (habitation) fronting onto Friar Street (ibid.). Further excavations in 1997 revealed a rectangular post built house (Wth 4.6m NE-SW; total L not established; excavated L 5.8m NW-SE) aligned with its long axis fronting onto the street which ran NW-SE (O'Donovan 2001, 23-33). The house was entered from the street front and has a paved central aisle which ran from the door NE through the building to the rear fo the house (ibid. 28). The hearth was lcoated in the centre of the SE end of the building, equidistant from the front and rear walls (ibid.). Internal post and stake holes were aligned NE-SW between the paved aisle and the hearth, forming an internal division within the building adjacent to the fireside (ibid. 28-9). The roof was supported on four substantial post holes located along the central NE-SW axis of the house with auxiliary roof supports in the NE and SW walls, providing a ridge-pole roof (ibid. 29). Finds and a radio-carbon sample date this house broadly to the 14th century A.D. (ibid. 30), when the house appears to have been constructed and after occupation to have been destroyed by fire (ibid. 33).

Compiled by: Jean Farrelly

Date of upload: 31 July 2014

References

O'Donovan, E. 1997 Friar Street, Cashel: Medieval urban. In I. Bennett (ed.), Excavations 1996: summary accounts of excavations in Ireland, 99-100. Bray. Wordwell.

O'Donovan, E. et al. 2001 Excavations at Friar Street, Cashel: An archaeological history of urban settlement. Unpublished excavation report, National Monuments Service, Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Dublin.