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AR01055_EMAP_Gazetteer_of_Sites_4-2_10.pdf - The Heritage ...

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Fermanagh<br />

the site - 1.10m wide x 0.40m deep - may have helped form an entrance into the medieval<br />

ecclesiastical complex along with ditch (1). It was traced for a distance <strong>of</strong> 22.40m and also<br />

cut the possible main early medieval enclosure ditch (4).<br />

A sub-rectangular medieval structure was uncovered in the extreme north <strong>of</strong> the excavated<br />

area. It was defined by a slot trench and several internal stake- and post-holes and had<br />

dimensions <strong>of</strong> 4m north/south by 6m east/west. One <strong>of</strong> the wall slots cut the uppermost fill <strong>of</strong><br />

an early Christian enclosure ditch (3) which indicates a change in layout in this part <strong>of</strong> the<br />

site in the medieval period. A possible north/south aligned medieval internal division (3)<br />

within the medieval ecclesiastical enclosure was located approximately 2.5m south <strong>of</strong> the<br />

medieval structure. It was recorded as being 0.80m wide and traced for a distance <strong>of</strong> 12.80m<br />

and contained nine sherds <strong>of</strong> medieval Ulster coarse ware pottery and two fragments <strong>of</strong> burnt<br />

bone. A small sub-circular pit was excavated in the north <strong>of</strong> the site and in excess <strong>of</strong> 100<br />

sherds <strong>of</strong> Medieval Ulster Coarse pottery were recovered from its single fill.<br />

A well defined linear medieval pathway was excavated in the western side <strong>of</strong> the excavated<br />

area; at its widest it was 3.20m wide and was tracked for a distance <strong>of</strong> 15.40m. <strong>The</strong> remains<br />

<strong>of</strong> a metalled surface were uncovered at the western extent <strong>of</strong> this surface. <strong>The</strong> cut for the<br />

pathway contained sherds <strong>of</strong> medieval Ulster coarse pottery, iron nails, slag and a fragment<br />

<strong>of</strong> a quern stone- re-used as a hone or sharpening stone. <strong>The</strong> pathway ran in the direction <strong>of</strong><br />

the church at its most westerly end and at its most easterly end petered out above the large<br />

area <strong>of</strong> early medieval industrial activity in the middle <strong>of</strong> the site. <strong>The</strong> pathway was probably<br />

a linking route between two <strong>of</strong> these zones within the ecclesiastical complex. Another<br />

metalled surface investigated for a length <strong>of</strong> 6.50m north-south x 2.30m east-west was<br />

uncovered directly beneath the early Christian industrial area and bowl furnace. Finds from<br />

this metalled surface included thirty pieces <strong>of</strong> slag and three metal objects.<br />

Two main medieval soil horizons were identified within the excavated area. <strong>The</strong> first<br />

contained two sherds <strong>of</strong> Medieval Ulster Coarse pottery and fragments <strong>of</strong> burnt sandstone. It<br />

overlay two truncated postholes and was cut by the substantial medieval enclosure ditch. <strong>The</strong><br />

second horizon covered much <strong>of</strong> the middle <strong>of</strong> the site and appeared to be the remains <strong>of</strong> an<br />

occupation layer dating to the medieval period. Excavated features <strong>of</strong> uncertain date included<br />

a pit cut into the fill <strong>of</strong> the large area <strong>of</strong> industrial activity and the arced foundation gully or<br />

trench <strong>of</strong> a possible structure which lay beyond the western limits <strong>of</strong> the excavated area. <strong>The</strong><br />

slot was a maximum <strong>of</strong> 0.25m wide x 0.12m deep and was traced for a distance <strong>of</strong> 3.30m.<br />

Finds from its fill comprised fragments <strong>of</strong> burnt bone and slag.<br />

Only a small proportion <strong>of</strong> the site was properly excavated and there was no evidence for<br />

masonry remains, burials, grave cuts, cross-slabs or any other religious artefacts or<br />

structures, suggesting that the area investigated was on the periphery <strong>of</strong> the ecclesiastical<br />

complex. <strong>The</strong> excavation indicated that the early Christian and medieval enclosures were<br />

located in the more northerly and westerly parts <strong>of</strong> the excavated area though most <strong>of</strong> the<br />

industrial activity appears to have taken place in the eastern and southern sectors. <strong>The</strong><br />

overlapping and differently aligned boundaries <strong>of</strong> the early Christian and medieval ditches<br />

indicate that the layout <strong>of</strong> the site changed through time. However, the limited extent <strong>of</strong> the<br />

excavation failed to demonstrate whether many <strong>of</strong> these ditches were contemporary with<br />

each other or reflect a constantly evolving ecclesiastical complex.<br />

Early Christian finds included approximately nine sherds <strong>of</strong> souterrain ware pottery,<br />

fragments <strong>of</strong> lignite bracelets, blue glass bead, iron and metal objects, flint, a considerable<br />

quantity <strong>of</strong> slag, burnt bone and hazel nuts. Medieval finds included 356 sherds <strong>of</strong> medieval<br />

Ulster Coarse pottery, metal work, a fragment <strong>of</strong> a quern-stone reused as a sharpening stone<br />

and an early fifteenth century coin.<br />

285

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