Burnt mound in Ratoath

Located in a marshy hollow at the bottom of an E-facing slope. A burnt spread came to light c. 0.5m below the sod in soil stripping (03E1300) for an extensive residential development (Wallace 2003) and was subsequently completely excavated (03E1632). It had been cut by a N-S field bank and hardly survived E of this feature. It was also cut by some E-W drains. It consisted of a thin spread of broken and burnt stone (dims 10m N-S; 7m E-W; max. T 0.2m) overlying a grey marl. A pit (dims 1.75m x 1m) 4.25m to the W was cut by three small drains. The pit had three fills, including burnt and decayed stone with charcoal flecks and it may have served as a trough for the burnt spread. Some post-holes were also beneath the burnt spread. Archaeological testing (20E0609) by C. Duffy c. 70m to the SE at the closest point produced no related material (excavations.ie 2020:346).(Wallace 2006a) Compiled by: Michael Moore Date of upload: 15 September 2020

Burnt mound in Ratoath is a Neolithic ritual or industrial site, dated to approximately 2500–2000 BCE. Its significance lies in providing evidence of early land use, heat-related activities, and possible ceremonial practices in the Neolithic period.