Excavation — miscellaneous in Knockmark

Situated on a fairly level landscape with a canalised NW-SE stream just to the W. Archaeological centre-line testing (04E0482) by T. O’Neill of Testing Area 20 of Contract 1 prior to the construction of the M3 motorway and its feeders identified archaeological features (excavations.ie: 2004:1278) that were excavated (E003050) by H. Schweitzer as Knockmark 1 in April-May 2006 (excavations.ie 2006:1596). A possible cremation pit was identified as an oval area (dims 2.12m x 1.72m; T 0.13m) with two fills of grey or black clayey silts with charcoal flecks and burnt bone, but an oxidized surface is not present. In addition there were three spreads (dims 1.45m x 0.22m; D 0.08m: 1.4m x 0.3m; D 0.08m: 1.62m x 1.05m; D 0.09m) of grey sandy clays with frequent burnt bone and charcoal inclusions which can be interpreted as cremation deposits, one of which produced a C14 date of 380-160 cal. BC. There was also an oval hearth (dims 1.32m x 0.97m) with a fire-reddened base, and two oval pits (dims 2.2m x 1.1m; D 0.12m: 1.83m x 1.2m; D 0.11m) together with three post-holes are nearby. Six other pits of similar dimensions and fills with ash and charcoal inclusions are at a greater distance from the hearth. A sample of hazel charcoal from one of the pits produced a C14 date of 2300-2050 cal. BC. These features were distributed amongst 25 tree boles which were irregularly-shaped spreads of clay in the subsoil with evidence of tree roots and incorporating a flint flake as well as animal bones and charcoal flecks. The area was cut by numerous drains and other late linear features, but flint and chert artefacts were recovered from the topsoil. (Schweitzer and Ginn 2008)