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Clare
The earthen oratory(s) were roughly contemporary with a small north-south rectangular
timber structure aligned within the partial remains of a rectangular enclosure. This structure,
rebuilt on a number of occasions, had traces of a pillared portico on its southern gable end,
and was interpreted as a possible shrine.
At least sixteen poorly preserved east-west burials were identified within the rectangular
enclosure and in the vicinity of the ‘Confessional’ Cell. Twelve burials were aligned with the
rectangular enclosure and with the sequence of small wooden structures in its interior.
The southern part of the rectangular enclosure containing the possible shrine was overlain by
the Saint’s graveyard and its surviving northern medieval stone wall. This graveyard appears
to have been formally laid out and walled in the twelfth century or shortly before it and the
recumbent graveslabs in situ within it are of roughly the same date.
The rectangular timber structure(s) appear to have been replaced as a shrine by a small
roughly mortared stone structure covering a shallow cist burial on the site of the present
early modern ‘Confessional’ cell to the east. It is suggested that this early stone structure on
the site of the ‘Confessional’ cell dates to the tenth/eleventh century. Further Romanesque
additions were made to St. Camin’s, ‘Teampal na bhFear nGonta and St. Bridget’s and St.
Mary’s church appears to have been built in the early thirteenth century.
This early stone structure, interpreted as a possible shrine inaugurated a concentrated phase
of stone building involving the construction of the original stone church of St. Caimin’s (A.D.
1000) and St. Bridget’s as well as a round tower dated to about the same time.
The base of the round tower had shallow foundations and was built upon a large flat carefully
prepared platform or ‘raft’ of puddle clay studded with small boulders and stones and ringed
by small drain-trenches. A narrow continuous trench or slot skirted the ‘raft’ of the round
tower and separated it from the area to the southwest and northwest. The trench possibly
supported a fence of some kind and was related to the phase of activity associated with the
round tower.
There is significant evidence for eleventh-twelfth century habitation and industrial activity. A
possible rectangular structure and traces of flimsy circular wooden structures- similar in form
to examples defined by gullies and post-holes to the west of St. Brigid’s enclosure- were
excavated within a lightly fenced early eleventh-thirteenth century ovoid enclosure (23m max
diameter) to the north of the ‘Confessional’ cell and the rectangular wooden enclosure.
Eleventh century bronze-working evidence- stone motif pieces, bronze waste and bronze
scraps with late 11/early 12 th century ‘Ringerike’ ornament- were associated with a number of
these huts within the enclosure. Tillage activity marked by furrows was roughly contemporary
with this eleventh century activity and with some burials inside the rectangular enclosure to
the south.
Numerous traces of circular wooden and earthen structures were identified in the vicinity of
the Round Tower and St. Caimin’s church and some of these were stratigraphically earlier
than the round tower. Two large circular houses (I & II), roughly 10m in diameter were
clearly identified to the southwest of the Round Tower. One of these buildings (I) contained a
projecting porch and a hearth which concealed a hoard of 21 early Norman coins from the
reign of Stephen (1135-1154) and Henry II (1154-1189).
The area to the west and southwest of the round tower revealed numerous pits and working
hollows with evidence for ironworking (mainly slag and bloom), principally dating to the
twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Two bullaun stones were excavated to the west of House I
and finds from this area produced numerous whetstones, iron bolts, knife blades, nails, burnt
bone, mortar, slag, chert chippings and a possible stone pestle belonging to the bullauns.
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