final excavation, n22 gortatlea to far ran fore, co. kerry - 04e0646

8/14/2019 Final Excavation, N22 Gortatlea to Far Ran Fore, Co. Kerry - 04E0646

1/21

Issu 5 [ISSN 2009-2237]

Archaeological Excavation ReportE0646 - Garrandarragh, Co. Kerry

Brnt mond

EachtraJournal


2/21

Te Forge,Innihannon, Co. Cork.el.: 021 470 16 16Fax: 021 470 16 28E-mail: [email protected] Site: www.eachtra.ie

Contact details:

March 2010.

Written by:

Client:

Final Excavation ReportN22 Gortatlea to Farranfore (Inchinveema)Road Improvement SchemeCONTRACT 2

Kerry County Council

04E0646

Niamh OCallaghan

Niamh OCallaghan

Licence No.:

Licensee:


3/21Permalink: http://eachtra.ie/index.php/journal/e0646-garraundarragh-co-kerry/

N22 Gortatlea to Farranfore (Inchinveema) - CONRAC 2 ISSUE5: Eachtra Jornal - ISSN 2009-223704E0646

iii

Copyright Notice: Please note that all original information contained within this report,including all original drawings, photographs, text and all other printed matter deemed to bethe writers, remains the property of the writer and Eachtra Archaeological Projects and so maynot be reproduced or used in any form withoutthe written consent of the writer or EachtraArchaeological Projects.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgement ........................................................................................................

Bk ...............................................................................................................

S ................................................................................

A k.......................................................

M............................................................................................................

E R .................................................................................................. 3

C ................................................................................................................

R ................................................................................................................ 5

A : C R..............................................................................

A : M.................................................................................................

A 3: C I.................................................................. 5

A : P ....................................................................... 7

Acnowledgements

Eachtra Archaeological Project wih to acknowledge the aitance of Kerry Conty Concil, Kerry

National Road Deign Oce, Project Archaeologit Sbatien Jobert, Martin Reid of National Mon-

ment Section of the Dept. of Environment, Heritage & Local Government and Deni Moriarty

Plant Hire.




1

Bacground

Te National Road Athority are ndertaking a programme of work to pgrade the N22 between

Cork and ralee. Part of thi work involve the realignment ofc. 3.8km of the N22 between Gortatlea

and Farranfore, Co. Kerry. Eachtra Archeological Project carried ot an archaeological aement

followed by a programme of centreline and oet teting, nder licence 04E104, on behalf of Kerry

Conty Concil in relation to the N22 road improvement cheme dring which a ulacht fadh wa

recorded at chainage 7450-7475 in the townland of Garrandarragh. Ti featre wa flly excavated

by Eachtra Archaeological Project, nder the direction of the athor with the permiion of the licen-

ing athoritie 04E0646, and the relt are preented below.

Site location and description

Te ulacht fadh,AR10, i located in the townland of Garrandarragh and the parih of Crran

(National Grid Reference Q093050/107950) in north Kerry, c. 4km north of Farranfore and c. 8km

oth-eat of ralee town. It i itated at the othern end of a wet and low-lying eld ed for rogh

patre and i bonded to the oth and eat by a btantial drainage dyke.

Archaeological and historical bacground

Te townland of Garrandarragh or Garrn darach mean oaky nderwood (OSNB). Ti name i

an indicator of what the region ed to look like, however, mot of the landcape ha been cltivated

and i now divided into eld for patre with diviion of matre hedgerow rather than the foret

ndergrowth that the townland name gget.

Te archaeological landcape in the general area extend from the Late Neolithic/Bronze Age to the

Medieval Period. Prehitoric monment in the rronding landcape inclde tanding tone and

ulachta fadh (Figre 2). Te ingle Standing Stone or gallan/galln i the implet and mot nmer-

o of Irih megalithic monment (OSllivan & Sheehan, 1996). Tey have been interpreted in

vario way, excavation of ome example howed that they marked brial of a Bronze Age date

(1400 700 BC) however excavated example have not alway hown thi and it i ally impoible

to date thee featre withot excavation, althogh it i generally accepted that they were erected over

a long period of time. Some Standing Stone are interpreted a bondary marker or ancient rote-way or ed to commemorate important ritalitic or ceremonial event or poibly a the remaining

evidence of a once more complex featre. Some example are fond in iolation while other occr in

cloe proximity to other archaeological featre eg decorated tone, Wedge tomb or Ring-barrow

(Cppage, 1986).

Fulacht fadh are the mot common Bronze Age monment in Ireland. Tee monment rvive a

low mond of charcoal rich black ilt packed with heat-hattered tone and are generally itated

cloe to a water orce. In many cae, however, all that rvive to the preent day are black preadwith fragment of hattered tone viible in ploghed eld. Tee are the mot nmero prehitoric

ite in Ireland with over 4,500 example recorded, althogh, nmber contine to rie with on-go-




2

ing eldwork (Waddell 1998, 174). Fulachta fadh are generally claied a cooking place, whereby

tone were heated in a hearth and beqently placed in a trogh of water, the water contined

to boil with the addition of hot tone and the wrapped food wa cooked within the hot water. Te

trogh eventally lled with mall tone, ah and charcoal that were removed and formed the bai of

the familiar mond. However, even thogh thee monment are nmero relatively few have been

cientically excavated. Ti lead to the ongoing debate that cooking wa not their primary fnc-

tion, particlarly de to the lack of hearth and abence of animal remain recorded. Other theorie

on their interpretation inclde bathing and dyeing textile together with the prodction of hot water

and team for crative prpoe and weat hoe (Kelly, 1989, 225). Waddell (1998, 177) gget the

emi-indtrial prpoe of ing the boiling water for dipping hide a part of the preparation of the

leather, while Dnne (per. comm.) gget a relationhip between brnt mond and Bronze Age

fnerary rite and brial practice.

wo ulachta fadh are located cloe to the rote (KE039 -067 & -109) and an additional eight newite were recorded. Tree ite were recorded in Garrandarragh townland within the area of the road

take. Te bject of thi report wa excavated nder licence 04E0646 and two otherulachta fadh were

excavated nder licence 04E0647 & 04E0647extenion. A frther ve brnt mond depoit were

recorded while monitoring topoil tripping at a borrow ite in the ame townland c. 80m to the wet

of 04E0646 (Fig. 2). Te ite were located otide the land made available for the road improvement

cheme. Te ite were recorded and mapped and covered with geoterim.

Te landcape i dominated by the preence of Early Medieval activity characterized by ringfort andearthen enclore. Ringfort are the mot nmero archaeological monment fond in Ireland, with

etimate of between 30 and 50,000 illtrated on the rt edition of the Ordnance Srvey 6 map

of the 1840 (Barry, 1987). A a relt of contined reearch thee monment have a narrow date

range dring the Early Chritian period between the 7th and 9th centrie AD. Althogh there are ome

very elaborate example of ringfort they often take the form of a imple earth or tone enclore and

fnctioned a ettlement for all clae of eclar ociety (Stot, 1997).

Enclore however are qite amorpho and in the abence of invetigation identication i not po-

ible. Tey cold repreent any of a nmber of ite type dating from Prehitoric to Early Medieval

time of rital or eclar natre.

Methodology

Te excavation wa ndertaken in a two week period in May 2004 by a team of ve archaeologit.

Te archaeological featre were excavated by hand and recorded with drawing, ection, photograph

and an EDM rvey. Sample were alo taken for analyi and radiocarbon dating. wo balk, 1m

wide forming a cro-hape over the mond, were etp and the excavation wa then carried ot in

for qadrant.




3

Excavation Results

Te baal remain of the ulacht fadh mond were recorded in tet trench 22, chainage 7470-7495,

Field 10, and meared 15m north-oth by 17m eat-wet and p to 0.40m deep (Plate 1 & 2, Fig-

re 3- 5). Ti featre i not a claiculacht fadh a decribed above bt the remain of a mond that

ha been ditrbed by land reclamation and the digging of drainage ditche and cltivation frrow.

Te remain of the brnt mond, F2, wa roghly oval in plan. Generally the mond wa compoed

of dark brown/black friable ilt with 50% of it compoed of brnt, coare, anglar mall tone. Te

layer, F2, wa relatively level and wa located in a hallow hollow. It wa deepet toward the centre, c.

0.40 0.45m, and became hallower toward the oter extremity (Plate 3). A radiocarbon date from

charcoal in thi layer retrned a date of cal BC 1530 1400 (cal BP 3480 to 3350, Beta 200761). Te

depoit wa ampled for the remain of charred plant and althogh no eed were recovered thi i

not nal in brnt mond depoit; the ample from aulacht fadh excavated nearby (Grrandar-

ragh 04E0647) contained only charcoal and at other ite ch a Ballydowny, Co. Kerry (02E0055)there were no charred eed from any of the veulachta fadh excavated. Ti abence of eed i de

to the natre of activity at the ite; althogh they are freqently interpreted a cooking place, they

are particlarly aociated with the cooking of meat and the abence of cereal grain and other eed

type indicate that any cooking carried ot did not inclde plant food. Mot of the plant material

fond atulachta fadh are from charcoal that wa ed a fel. At Garrandarragh brnt mond the

charcoal wa identied a hazel/alder and willow/poplar. Wood type ch a thee, in particlar alder

and willow, are often fond atulachta fadh ite; they are damp-loving and therefore often grow near

the low-lying grond whereulachta fadh are commonly itated.

Tere wa one ct featre recorded below F2, thi i tentatively interpreted a a trogh (F6), althogh

a it wa not fll of typicalulachtmaterial. It wa b-circlar in plan with vertical ide, a at bae

and meared 0.98 by 0.95 by 0.50m deep (Figre 6). Tere were two ll recorded within F6. Te

lower ll, F5 wa waterlogged and compoed of dark grey/brown peaty ilt with 90% coare mall

nbrnt tone. Te pper ll, F4 wa compoed of dark grey/black peaty ilt with only 20% nbrnt

coare mall tone. Fragment of root and twig were recorded in the baal ll, F5, ome of thee

were brnt and one piece wa poibly worked, 04E0646:6:1. A hazelnt hell wa recorded from the

pper ll, F4.

Tree land drain trncated the remain of theulacht mond, thee were deemed to be relatively

recent featre. Te larget of thee wa F10 wa orientated north-wet/oth-eat and lled with F7,

8 and 9.

Te boil nder the remain of theulachtmond varied from orange clay with iron panning to grey

clay with pocket of white clay.




4

Conclusion

Te featre excavated were the ditrbed remain of a ulacht fadh mond, dating to the Middle

Bronze Age. Te mond itelf had been leveled and poibly pread ot beyond it original location.

It didnt have a formal hape and wa patchy in place. It wa alo damaged by later drainage featre

and land reclamation work.

Charcoal from the ll of the trogh in Garrandarragh flacht adh (04E0647)ha been dated to

the Later Bronze Age cal BC 1000 to 790 (Beta 200762). Te date contribte to the mall bt grow-

ing cataloge of date for ulachta fadh in Co. Kerry. Fulachta fadh excavated frther oth in the

townland of Coolgarriv (Kiely 2000) and Ballydowney (Kiely 2002) near Killarney have prodced an

Iron Age date cal BC 410 to 160 (Beta 170031), a Middle Bronze Age date cal BC 1490 to 1200 (Beta

168811) and an Early Bronze Age date cal BC 1890 to 1540 (Beta 168809) repectively.

Prior to the archaeological work aociated with the contrction of the N22 between Gortatlea andFarranfore, twoulachta fadh were recorded in Garrandarragh townland. In the core of archaeo-

logical work aociated with the N22 project a total of eight new ulachta fadh have been recorded,

three of the ite have been excavated and ve were recorded and covered. Flachta adh are generally

Bronze Age in date a conrmed by the mot recent radiocarbon date obtained - and are a efl

indicator of Bronze Age activity. Tere are no known Bronze Age ettlement ite in the townland.




5

References

1t edition ordnance rvey heet KE039 (1841)

2nd edition ordnance rvey heet KE039 (1897) in conjnction with the RMP (1997)

Ordnance Srvey 1:50,000 Dicovery Serie Map (No. 71)

Ordnance Srvey Name Book

Ordnance Srvey Letter

National Mem of Ireland, opographical le, Antiqitie of Kerry Origin

Barry, .B. 1987 Te Archaeology o Medieval Ireland, Rotledge, London and New York.

Cppage, J. 1986 Dingle Peninsula, Archaeological Survey. Oidhreacht Chorca Dhuibhne, Ballyferritor.

Kelly, M. J. 1989 Early Ireland, An Introduction to Irish Prehistory, Cambridge Univerity Pre.

Kiely, J. 2000 Excavation o ulacht fadh at Coolgarriv Co. Kerry. Unpblihed excavation report

Eachtra Archaeological Project.

Kiely, J., OCallaghan, N. 2002 Excavation o prehistoric and historic sites at Ballydowney, Co. Kerry.

Unpblihed excavation report Eachtra Archaeological Project.

OSllivan, A. & Sheehan, J. 1996 Te Iveragh Peninsula; An Archaeological Survey o South Kerry. Cork

Univerity Pre.

Stot, M. 1997 Te Irish Ringort, For Cort Pre, Dblin.

Waddell, J. 1998 Te Prehistoric Archaeology o Ireland, Galway Univerity Pre.




6

Figure1:

ExtractfromOSDiscoveryma

pshowingtheexistingN22an

dthelineofthenewroute.


10/21

GarraundarraghTownland

04E0648

Fulacht Fiadh04E0646

Borrow site

Fulachta Fiadh04E0647

Archaeology

Legend

Fulacht Fiadh

Enclosure

Ringfort

Standing Stone

Townland Boundary

New route of N22

Permalink: http://eachtra.ie/index.php/journal/e0646-garraundarragh-co-kerry/


7

Figure 2: Portion of RMP sheets KE09 & 048 showing line of the new portion of the N22 andthe location of the new fulachta adh.


11/21


12/21

A

-093043,

107877

B

-093039,

107861

A1

B1

Are

ofexcavation



9

Figure4:Sitesurveyindicatingulachtfadhpre-excavationandthesectionallinesforthemoundandtrough.


13/21

A

B

0

3m

Excavated

Cross-trench



10

Figure5:

Sectionalproleofulachtfad

hmound.


14/21




12

Plate 1: Pre-ex view of remains ofulacht fadh mound, taen from north.

Plate 2: View of remains ofulacht fadh mound during excavation, taen from north.




13

Plate : View of section of remains ofulacht fadh mound during excavation, taenfrom the south.


17/21




15

Appendix : Charcoal Identication

Sample Data Measured 13C/12C ConventionalRadiocarbon Age Ratio Radiocarbon Age(*)

Beta - 200761 3220 +/ - 40 BP -26.3 o/oo 3200 +/ - 40 BP

SAM PLE : 04E0646: 2:1

ANALYSIS : AM S-Standard de livery

MATERIAL/PRETREATMENT : (charred material): acid/alkali/acid

2 SIGM A C ALIB RATION : Cal BC 1530 to 1400 (Cal BP 3480 to 3350)

____________________________________________________________________________________

Beta - 200762 2730 +/ - 70 BP -26.3 o/oo 2710 +/ - 70 BP

SAM PLE : 04E0647: 5:5

ANALYSIS : Radiom etric-Standard de livery


2 SIGM A C ALIB RATION : Cal BC 1000 to 790 (Cal BP 2950 to 2740)

____________________________________________________________________________________

Beta - 200763 760 +/ - 40 BP -26.3 o/oo 740 +/ - 40 BP

SAM PLE : 04E0648: 5:0

ANALYSIS : AM S-Standard delivery


2 SIGM A CALIB RATION : Cal AD 1230 t o 1300 (Cal BP 720 to 650)

____________________________________________________________________________________

Consistent Accuracy...

Delivered On Time.

Beta Analytic Inc.4985 SW 74 CourtMiami, Florida 33155 USATel: 305 667 5167Fax: 305 663 [email protected]




16

CA LIBRATION O F RADIOCARBO N AGE TO CALENDA R YEAR S

(Va riables: C13/C12= -26.3:lab. mult=1)

Laboratory number: Beta-200761

Conventio nal radiocarbon age: 320040 BP

2 Sigma c alibr ated result:(95% probability)

Cal BC 1530 to 1400 (C al BP 3480 to 3350)

Intercept data

Intercept of radiocarbon agewith calibration curve: Cal BC 1450 (Cal BP 3400)

1 Sigm a calibrated result:(68% proba bility)

Cal BC 1510 to 1420 (Cal BP 3460 to 3 380)

498 5 S.W. 74th Co urt , M iami, Florida 3315 5 Tel: (3 05)667- 5167 F ax: (305)663-0964 E-Mail: beta@ra diocarbo n.comBeta Analytic Radiocarbon Dating Laboratory

T alma, A . S., Vo gel, J . C., 1993, R adiocarbon 35(2), p317-322A Sim pl ifi ed Approach to Calibrating C14 Da tes

Mathematics

Stui ver, M., et. al., 1998, R adiocarbon 40(3 ), p10 41-1083INTCAL98 Radiocarbon Age C al ibration

Stui ver, M., v an der Plicht, H ., 199 8, R adi oca rbon 40( 3), pxii -xiiiEditorial Com m entCalibration Da tabase

INTC AL98Database u sed

References:

Radiocarbonage(BP)

3060

3080

3100

3120

3140

3160

3180

3200

3220

3240

3260

3280

3300

3320

Ch ar red m aterial

3340

Cal BC

1540 1530 1520 1510 1500 1490 1480 1470 1460 1450 1440 1430 1420 1410 1400

320040 BP




17

Appendix 4: Plant remains report

By Abigail Brewer and Penny Johnton

Introduction

One ample from 04E0646 wa canned for macro-plant remain. Ti ample (S.1) came from brnt

mond material (C.2) and it prodced 30g of charcoal after ieving. No plant remain other than

charcoal were fond in thi ample.

Methodology

Te oil ample wa proceed ing manal wah over and ieve with mehe of 1mm, 500m and

250m. Te ample wa canned ing a binoclar microcope at x10 to x40 magnication.

Results

Te only type of plant remain fond in the ample from thi ite wa charcoal, inclding fragment

of poible hazel or alder and poible willow or poplar. Wood type ch a thee, in particlar alder

and willow, are often fond atulachta fadh ite a they are damp-loving, and therefore often grow

near the low-lying grond whereulachta fadh are commonly itated.

Context: 2Sample: 1

Weight: 3gFragments: 11Ring Porouscf Hazel/Alder 6cf Willow/Poplar 1Unident. 3Sample weight for C14:


21/21


Ti abence of plant remain evidence i de to the natre of activity at the ite in the pat. Tee

ite are freqently interpreted a cooking ite, in particlar ed for the cooking of meat; the dearth

of cereal grain and other eed at the many ite that have been examined indicate that any cooking

carried ot atulachta fadh did not inclde cereal food. Mot of the plant material fond atulachta

fadh are from fel ed in re at the ite and therefore vat qantitie of charcoal are generally re-

covered.

final excavation, n22 gortatlea to far ran fore, co. kerry - 04e0646

Documents