Fulacht fia

The National Monuments Service's description

Identified in centre-line testing (E4110) in advance of the M11 Gorey to Enniscorthy road scheme and set aside for resolution as Ballinclay 2 (Hardy et al. 2010, 38-9). It is situated on towards the bottom of a S-facing slope and was completely excavated (E4189) by B. Sutton when a large rectangular trough (dims 2.3m x 1.5m; D 0.35m) was recorded with 7 stake-holes in the two northern corners, but pits cut the NE (dims 1.9m x 0.8m; D 0.35m) and NW (1.4m x 0.8m; D 0.4m) sides, perhaps to make working platforms or steps down to the trough. The NW cut had 67 stake-holes, perhaps forming a wind-break. There were other pits that could have been troughs; an oval pit (dims 2.65m x 2m; D 0.9m) 5m to the E had a large natural stone in the base but there were 13 stake-holes outside it at NW. Just 1m to the E another oval pit (dims 3m x 1.75m; D 0.49m) was round-bottomed and had silt and clay fills. An oval pit (dims 2.4m x 1.8m; D 0.4m) 1m S of the rectangular trough was largely filled with burnt mound material. These features were beneath a mound of burnt stone material (dims 20.9m E-W; 10m N-S; T 0.07-0.12m), which was overlying smaller layers of this material at the E edge. A hearth (dims 1.4m x 0.8m; T 0.9m) was 12m NW of the trough and outside the mound. Material from the rectangular trough produced a C14 date of cal. BC 888-792, but material from the oval pit produced a C14 date of cal. BC 1432-1313, so a lengthy period of use is indicated. The unrelated pit (WX011-069----) is c. 150m to the NNW and the fulacht fia (WX011-072----) is c. 150m to the SW. (McNamara and Ruttle 2012; Sutton 2013)

Compiled by: Michael Moore

Date of upload: 26 November, 2013

References

Hardy, C., Nugent, L., Homan Reid, R; O'Liathain, N; Whitty, Y.; and Coleman, C. 2010 N11 Gorey to Enniscorthy scheme. Archaeological Consultancy Services, Stage (1)a. E4110. Testing report for Wexford County Council. Unpublished. TVAS (Ireland).

McNamara, M. and Ruttle, E. 2012 M11 Gorey to Enniscorthy scheme, Co. Wexford. E4189, Ballinclay 2. Stage (IV) Final Excavation Report for Wexford County Council. Unpublished report, TVAS (Ireland).

Sutton, B. 2013 Ballinclay 2: burnt stone mound, trough, and pits. In I. Bennett (ed.), Excavations 2010: summary accounts of archaeological excavations in Ireland, 214, No. 679. Dublin. Wordwell.