Pit in Gunnocks

Archaeological monitoring (15E0577) by P. Duffy, D. Bayle and J. Whitaker of topsoil stripping over a large area (c. 92 ha.) conducted intermittently between Dec. 2015 and October 2018 uncovered 37 locations of potential archaeological importance (excavations.ie 2016:051). Each of these was further investigated by the same archaeologists under different licences. At Site 31 a group of features were excavated (16E0634) in a confined area (dims c. 5m E-W; c. 3m N-S). Six shallow cuts (dims 0.3m x 0.26m; D 0.05m to dims 0.84m x 0.52m; D 0.2m) had fills of grey/brown silty clays with charcoal flecks. One pit (dims 0.9m x 0.65m; D 0.15m) with undiagnostic burnt bone, burnt stone and charcoal in its fill is described as a fire pit and another pit also had burnt bone. Fifteen pieces of flint debitage and two chert flakes were recovered, and samples of alder and fruitstone charcoal from them provided C14 dates of 2876-2630 (FTMC-BD08-5), 2864-2501 (FTMC-BD08-3), and 2860-2948 cal. BC (FTMC-BD08-4), placing them in the Late Neolithic. Within 10m to the S and 25m to the E isolated pits that were excavated as part of Site 31 proved to be Middle Bronze Age in date. (Duffy et. al. 2021, 6-7) South of the Neolithic pits were three pits (dims 0.6m; D 0.05m to 0.86-1.35m x 0.8-1.1m; D 0.44m) and a hearth (dims 0.53m x 0.45m; D 0.09m) that had fills brown/black silty clays with charcoal flecks, but the largest pit provided eight sherds of Middle Bronze Age pottery representing two domestic vessels that can be dated stylistically to c. 1500-1300 BC, a flint scraper, a chert blade and flint debitage. To the E of the Neolithic pits, a pit (dims 1m x 0.45m; D 0.1m) filled with dark gravelly sand was just 4m E of a second pit (dims 1.05m x 0.6m; D 0.14m) that had a fill of dark brown clay over a red-orange clay that had been burnt. No artefacts were recovered from these pits but a sample of burnt fruitstone from the larger pit provided a C14 date of 1604-1436 ca. BC (FTMC-BD08-7). (Duffy et. al. 2021, 20-2) Compiled by: Michael Moore Date of upload: 26 April, 2023 Duffy, P., Fairhead, S. & F. Fleeshouven 2021 Final Excavation Report for Sites 3-37, Clonee, Portan, Gunnocks, Co. Meath. Multiple licences, Unpublished report, Irish Archaeological Consultancy