Excavation

Archaeological testing carried out at Sheep Street by Tracy Collins, Aegis Archaeology Ltd, under licence no. 02E1318, the results of which were summarised as following; 'This large plot, which had been vacant for some time, was tested in 2000 by Celie O Rahilly (Excavations 2000, No. 598, 00E0423). The site is bounded to the south by Gaol Lane, to the east by the Limerick Northern Relief Road, to the north by Meat Market Lane and to the west by the rear of properties that face onto Mary Street. The site is bisected by the medieval town wall. The sites of two medieval gates, Gaol Lane Gate to the south and Abbey Gate to the north, are on the line of the site boundary. The purpose of testing was to locate precisely the deposits found in the previous testing. An impact assessment and building inspection were also undertaken. Twelve trenches were dug across the site, most of which yielded archaeological layers, particularly a black organic layer, up to 2m deep and 1.8m thick, in places. Though obviously archaeological in nature, this layer could not be accurately dated because of the lack of diagnostic artefacts. A later feature, tentatively identified as a small, local, clay-pipe kiln, was found in the western part of the site, perhaps originally situated in a larger structure, which included large amounts of unused clay-pipe fragments. Fragments of similar pipes were recovered during the excavations at Charlotte’s Quay. They were identified as being of Irish manufacture, bearing a stamp with a cock in relief and the legend ‘While I Live I’ll Crow’ and dated to the 19th century (Lynch 1984, 313–14, fig. 14:11). The excavator did not find a kiln at that time, however, so these pipes may have been made locally in a kiln such as the one found at Sheep Street. The Charlotte’s Quay examples had a spade motif on the spur of the bowl, which was not evident on the examples found during this testing. A second phase of testing was undertaken on a site immediately adjacent to the above site. This investigated an area to the north of Meat Market Lane and to the rear of properties that front onto Athlunkard Street. Only three trenches were dug, as most of the plot is covered by sheds (recorded as part of the project). One trench did not reveal any archaeological material; one encountered an old road surface; and the third revealed the same black organic layer that had already been found. Again, it did not contain any datable material and rested on natural, estuarine clays' (www.excavations.ie). Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien Date of upload: 20 December 2019