Fulacht fia in Sonnagh

In an E–W peat basin bordered to N and S by drier higher ground. An E–W field drain lay 5m to S, possibly following the line of an earlier stream. This fulacht fia (designated Sonnagh 3) was discovered during archaeological testing and subsequently fully excavated in advance of the construction of the N5 Charlestown bypass (Ministerial direction no. A020/003; Registration no. E23345) (Gillespie and Kerrigan 2010, 74-76.). The roughly oval mound (10m by 6m; H 0.35m), which was enveloped in peat, was composed of compacted burnt stone in a charcoal-rich peaty matrix interspersed with lenses of peat. A trough, cut into the underlying peat, was found beneath the SW edge of the mound. It consisted of a sub-circular pit (diam. 1.25m; max. D 0.4m), with concave sides and a flat base. There was a single split alder plank in the base of the trough, held in position by two wooden rods, one at each end. A sample of alder charcoal from the trough fill produced a radiocarbon date of 2867-2497 Cal. BC (GrN-30754), indicating usage in the late Neolithic period. (Gillespie and Kerrigan 2010, 74-76.) Compiled by: Jane O’Shaughnessy Date of upload: 26 January 2021