What is recorded here

Seven centuries before the Roman road reached Britain, hands cut a shallow circular pit in County Cork and filled it with charcoal-rich silt. It sat among nearly a hundred other marks, suggesting a busy place rather than a lone event. The road works exposed it only because modern speed cut through old patience.

Archaeological excavation during the construction of the N8 Mitchelstown relief road uncovered a subcircular shallow pit (0.4m x 0.38m; D 0.07m), with a rounded base, which contained a charcoal-rich silt fill. The charcoal was identified as ash and returned a radiocarbon date of 1885-1690 cal. BC (UB-6721) (Sutton 2006e, 9). The pit occurs in a concentration of almost 100 pits, post-holes and stake-holes (CO019-172----). A similar pit (CO019-176----) was located 7.4m to the SE and a pit-burial (CO019-174----) was located 1.2m to the WSW. Two further charcoal-rich pits (CO019-177----; CO019-178----) were located c. 100m to the N. (Sutton 2006e, 9, 52; 2007d, 69-70). The above description is derived from 'The Archaeological Inventory of County Cork. Volume 5' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 2009). Date of upload: 22 December 2009

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