Fulacht fia in Castlegowan

In an E–W field ditch on the N boundary of a pasture field in an area of undulating boggy terrain. Ground rises gently for 50m to S where a cashel (SL005-016----) is sited on the crest of the elevation. This fulacht fia is not visible at surface ground level. It has been bisected by an E–W field ditch (Wth 2m at top, 0.5-0.6m at base; D 1.4-1.5m). The mound (L 9m E–W; H 1.4m) is clearly visible in both section faces as a gently domed, dense concentration of angular, heat-shattered stone fragments in black charcoal-rich soil. The top of the mound underlies a layer (D 0.3-0.4m) of peat and sod, and the mound extends to the full depth of the field drain. A piece of timber protrudes slightly from the E edge of the mound at the base of the field ditch in the S section face, but it is impossible to determine if this is related structurally in any way to the fulacht fia. To the N of the field ditch there is an area of rough boggy, scrub-covered ground, and here the field ditch is bordered by heaps of field clearance debris, and soil upcast from the digging of the ditch. These heaps are now largely scrub-covered, but displaced burnt mound material is visible in parts, and two timber planks -possibly originally derived from a trough -protrude from one of the spoil heaps. Notified to NMS by Leo Leydon. Compiled by: Jane O’Shaughnessy Date of upload: 29 May 2019