ARDSALLAGH 1
| Site Name / Townland | Site Number | Description | Provisional site type | Provisional dating |
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| Ardsallagh 1 | 2-34 | Ring-ditch, cremations and inhumations. | Burial site | Possible Iron Age |
Testing
A more typical ring-ditch (11m diameter) of probable Bronze Age to Iron Age date was identified at Ardsallagh 1 over 1km north of the River Boyne (Section 2).
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Extract of 1st edition Ordnance Survey map (1836) showing location of site at Ardsallagh 1, indicated by the blue circle in the lower half of the map. The River Boyne flows south-east / north-west in the top right-hand corner of the map. A small section of the main Dunshaughlin to Navan road is visible to the north-east of the river. The road to Kennastown runs south-east / north-west to the immediate east of the site location marker. (OS Sheet 31, Scale 1:10,560. Reproduced by courtesy of the Board of Trinity College Dublin). |
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| Cremation in pottery vessel at Ardsallagh 1. (Courtesy of ACS Ltd.) |
Cremations and extended inhumations were identified both inside and outside this enclosure during testing. One of the cremations contained in an urn was located outside the ring-ditch within a pit, which was badly truncated by ploughing.
Geophysical Survey
The geophysical survey of the site shows that the ring-ditch is respected by a later field boundary indicating that a mound was extant at the time of construction of that boundary.
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A ring-ditch at Ardsallagh respected by disused field boundary. Features identified by geophysical survey as possible archaeological site (dark blue) and confirmed in testing (light blue). The ring-ditch is visible in this image as the circular enclosure in the centre of the image (F107 & F141). A distinct bend in the linear ditch (disused field boundary, F103 & F108) respecting the northeastern quadrant of the ring-ditch, suggests that the ring-ditch was known to the excavators of the linear ditch. (Courtesy of ACS Ltd.) |
Preliminary Excavation Results
Archaeological excavation revealed a prehistoric and early medieval burial site consisting of a ringditch, which enclosed 23 burials. The burials were laid on their backs and were oriented east-west, indicating a Christian burial rite. The remains of a pottery vessel containing cremated bone was located a short distance northwest of the ringditch.
Cremation Burial
Cremation was a predominant burial rite in Ireland in the Bronze Age. Occasionally the cremated bone and part of the funeral pyre were buried in a pit inside a ringditch or in the ditch itself. Other times, as in this case, the cremated remains were placed in a pottery vessel and buried in the ground. A pit containing a pottery vessel in which was contained cremated (burnt) bone and charcoal was removed by professional conservator Susannah Kelly in February 2006. The urn will be excavated under laboratory conditions.
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| To prepare the pot for removal by the conservator, soil is excavated from around the pot. Approximately 3-5cm of soil is left in situ to keep the pot in place, creating a pedestal on which the pot sits.
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Cling film (or tin foil) is then wrapped around the pedestal. This acts as a release layer beneath the resin bandages, allowing the hardened resin to be peeled off without damaging the soil pedestal or pot. | |
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| Resin bandages are applied after the release layer and left to dry. The resin hardens to provide a solid protective shell around the pedestal, allowing it to be safely lifted. | The conservator marks the hardened resin with the archaeological site's DOEHLG record number and a north arrow indicating its orientation in the ground prior to removal. | |
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| The pedestal is carefully undermined with small wooden wedges inserted at its base. | The conservator slides a board under the pedestal to provide a platform on which it can be lifted from the pit. | |
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| The pedestal is lifted into a hard plastic container lined with protective bubble-wrap for transport to the laboratory. |
Download the recently published articles on Ardsallagh 1 and 2 in our Publications section.
Return to Section 2.
Final Report
Please click on the link to access the final archaeological report for Ardsallagh 1
| Final Report of Ardsallagh 1 | 10.0MB |
