Burnt mound in Cherryville

The excavated site (Thaddeus C. Breen, Licence No. 01E0350: www.excavations.ie) was a deposit of fire-shattered stones in a matrix of charcoal-rich soil. It measured 7.5m by 2.5m and consisted of sandstone and limestone in a ratio of 3:1. This deposit, 0.2m thick, overlay a thin peaty layer with small amounts of burnt stone and flecks of charcoal. This, in turn, overlay two features: a pit and a linear depression which was probably natural. The pit was oval, 2.85m by 1.9m, and up to 0.27m deep. It was filled with dark brown peaty clay containing a large amount of burnt stone. In the base, on the west side, was a deeper cut, also oval (0.66m by 0.43m), which was a further 0.3m deep. The fill of this was charcoal-rich clay containing some burnt stone. Just beyond the south-western edge of the spread, a cluster of stake-holes was found. They ranged in diameter from 0.04m to 0.11m and in depth from 0.07m to 0.24m, and were situated in a shallow area which appeared to be natural, covering an area approximately 1m by 0.8m. The only finds from this site were a sherd of medieval pottery and a piece of possible slag, both found in topsoil. Compiled by: Gearóid Conroy Date of upload: 23 November 2011