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

Kildare
of gullies were identified outside the building and may represent the foundations of ancillary
structures or shelters. It is uncertain if this was a house, potentially later than the round
house, or a building used for industrial activity. There was a higher presence of industrial
waste in pits close to the building whereas, conversely, the pits close to the round house
contained less industrial waste and higher charred cereal remains indicative of food refuse.
Two glass beads were retrieved from features close to Structure II.
The ironworking area (Metalworking Area A) was located immediately north of Structures’ II
and III. Both furnaces and smithing hearths were identified in this area as the heat-scorched
bowl depressions contained both smelting and smithing slags. The presence of hammer-scale
within the hearths and the gully surrounding Structure II further attests to iron smithing at
Killickaweeny. Another find, indicative of ironworking, was a tuyère, which was recovered
from an abandonment fill of the well, close to the bowl furnaces. A number of gullies in this
area probably supported shelters around the ironworking features. Eighty six kilograms of
iron slag were retrieved from the site and the majority came from features in the immediate
vicinity of the ironworking area including the well and enclosure ditch. Most of the slag was
related to smelting activities but smithing slag was also identified in lower quantities.
Immediately to the north of Structure II was a square-shaped building defined by four evenly
spaced stone-packed postholes. Structure IV measured approximately 2m southwestnortheast
and 2.7m southeast-northwest. The poles may have supported an elevated grain
store but its location within the area utilised for ironworking suggests it could have been a
hut or shelter related to industrial activities.
Structure III survived as a shallow penannular-shaped gully to the immediate west of
Structure II. It measured 5m in diameter and would also have been situated beside the
enclosure bank. It may have been another structure related to industrial activity or was
perhaps a barn or another farm out-building.
Other features within the settlement enclosure included a funnelled pit in the south-western
area. It was located close to the round house and may have collected and stored water for
domestic use. A large iron possible candlestick holder was retrieved from the upper fill of this
pit. The well was located close to the ironworking area and naturally filled with water. The
water could have been used for both industrial and domestic use. Its upper fill contained
metallurgical waste which demonstrates that it had gone out of use while the occupants
continued to forge and mend iron objects. Other finds from the well included a grindstone
and a wooden rod. The well, along with another pit in the enclosure, were dated between the
mid seventh and late ninth centuries.
It was noteworthy that archaeological features were mostly absent north of the linear internal
division and this area was probably used for livestock management. This shallow linear gully
may have supported a fence which divided the living and livestock areas within the
settlement.
Another industrial area (Metalworking Area B) was located outside the enclosure within the
confines of the earliest enclosure to the north of the site. A large figure-of-eight shaped
smithing hearth was identified in this area.
Artefacts, other than those mentioned discovered during excavation, included two further
glass beads, a possible shears blade, an iron needle, iron nails, fragments of copper alloy
tubing, a small quantity of lithics, and bone needles.
Animal bone was discovered from all pits within the enclosure. Cattle dominated the
assemblage and the minimum number of individuals (MNI) was 27. Cut and crush marks
were visible on the bone. The number of sheep/goat and pigs were similar. The MNI for the
former was 18 and it was 14 for the latter. The bones of horses, dogs, a cat and birds were
also identified. The richest assemblage of charred seeds at Killickaweeny 1 came from a pit
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