What is recorded here

Balgatheran is an Early Christian industrial site in County Louth, Ireland, identified before road construction. A narrow rectangular building measured 7.37m x 2.1m, contained a hearth, and held charcoal, ash, iron slag and worked iron. It lay just south of two large ditches, beside a hut and kiln, while three later Medieval structures joined the same place.

Discovered prior to road construction (Excavation Licence No. 00E0477). An area measuring c. 4800sq m was excavated (Chapple 2002, 210-12). A variety of different structures and phases of activity were identified. Two large boundary ditches (LH021-065001- and LH021-065002-), an industrial site (LH021-065003-), a hut site (LH021-065004-) and a kiln (LH021-065005-) date to the Early Christian period. Three structures (LH021-065006-, LH021-065007- and LH021-065008-) date to the Medieval period. This industrial site (LH021-065003-) was located just S of two substantial ditches (LH021-065001- and LH021-065002-). Nine postholes represented a roughly rectangular structure (7.37m x 2.1m). One of the postholes produced some iron slag and fragments of worked iron. Two possible entrances were noted along with an internal hearth. Large quantities of charcoal and ash were revealed on the floor. Some fifteen stakeholes on the SW side of the structure may have represented a wall of post and wattle construction. On the SE side a gravel surface was uncovered. (Chapple 2002, 211) Compiled by: Claire Breen Date of upload: 20 July 2012

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