Neolithic and Bronze Age Landscapes of North Mayo: Report 2011

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stretches of walling on Gortmelia hilltop, all indicate large-scale land divisions, possibly for the purposes of pasture farming. However, small enclosures also occur. On the Southwest slope of Gortmelia hill, an oval enclosure measures 120m by 85m and covers an area of 0.7ha. Tagged onto its uphill side is a semi-oval enclosure of length 50m and area 0.2ha. These enclosures are located 160m Northeast of a house site, H1. Their location close to the house and their size may indicate that they were used for the purposes of tillage. The sub-square enclosure on the Southwest slope of Faulagh hill measures 85m by 60m (0.5ha) and may also have been used for tillage. Direct evidence of arable farming appears to be present in the vicinity of 2 round houses on the Southwest slope of Dooncarton hill. A negative lynchet located to the East of house site H1, is accompanied by a positive lynchet to the S of house site H2. Two small clearance cairns are incorporated into the East end of the positive lynchet. What resembles a short stretch of low stone wall, immediately to the S of the negative lynchet, may in fact be the remains of a headland. The area enclosed by the lynchets measures 50m by 50m (0.25ha). Three house sites, all of which are round, were located within the study area. All are sited on Southwest facing slopes. The 2 house sites previously mentioned on Dooncarton hill, H1 and H2, are located within 10m of each other, on an area of ground terraced into the hillslope. They are sited at an elevation of 300-400 ft OD, while the third house, H3 on Gortmelia hill, is at 100 to 200 ft OD. House site H1 is almost completely exposed. It consists of a low ring of stones, with evidence in places of inner and outer facing stones. The facing stones indicate an original wall width of c. 85cms and the internal diameter of the feature is c 5.7m. The second adjacent house, H2, is completely covered by c. 50cms of bog, with the structure reflected in the present bog surface. The profiles indicate a collapsed ring of stones, with diameters of 7.5m internally and 12.5m externally. 136
The third house site, H3, on Gortmelia hill, is partially exposed but is mostly covered by bog varying in depth from 10 to 85cms. The probed profile also indicates a collapsed ring of stones, with diameters of 8.6m internally and 15m externally. Prehistoric settlements Dooncarton hill The area of bogland, where the isolated boundary on the North slope of Dooncarton hill is located, is confined on its West side by present-day agricultural land. It is also confined by agricultural land on the lower slopes to the East, while the higher slopes of the hillside in that area appear too steep to allow settlement to occur. The presence of the court tomb, M14 and the stone circle, SC 2, may indicate that the field boundaries originally extended at least that far along the North slope of the hill. The inference that the tomb and the stone circle may be reasonably used as indicators of the original presence of field boundaries will be discussed later. A local inhabitant, Mr James Cuff, stated that prehistoric boundaries were also present on the agricultural land on the West side, but were removed within living memory for building purposes. The lowlying bog along the Northwest coast in Graghil townland mostly comprises cut-away bogland that displays no evidence of prehistoric boundaries. It is unlikely therefore that the field systems, in this area at least, extended to the coastline, or even extended below the 100 ft contour. The system on the Northwest slope is mostly separated from that on the Southwest slope by modern settlement. However as previously noted, the principal upper boundary represents a unifying factor. The presence of a 280m stretch of field boundary and an unclassified megalith on an island of cut-away bogland in the middle of the modern settlement also demonstrate that the prehistoric field system originally extended into that area. Agricultural land divides the settlement complex on the Southwest slope from the 2 stretches of upper boundary feature noted on the Southeast shoulder of the hill. The more northerly of these 2 stretches curves around an elbow of the hillside at an altitude of 570 ft OD, its direction indicating 137
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Neolithic and Bronze Age Landscapes
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Table of Contents Introduction ....
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Scientific Research associated with
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Introduction This report reviews th
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- A summary of the radiocarbon dati
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Creating Digital Archaeological Lan
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Figure 2: Data Model for NBNM GIS R
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Figure 4: example of outputs at Cé
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Rathlackan As a result of a lack of
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Radiocarbon Dating A further tranch
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RATHLACKAN Lab Number F no S. No Co
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GLENULRA ENCLOSURE Notes Cal BC (95
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Lab Code Cutting Sample Material AR
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Charcoal analysis from Neolithic an
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Results Overall charcoal 83 samples
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Glenulra Scatter 92E140 Middle Neol
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Oak and birch were recorded from Cu
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35 30 no of samples 25 20 15 10 5 0
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Area A A long length of Neolithic f
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piece was 17 years old when cut, ba
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elating to midden B2P and from five
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1% 6% Corylus 1% 14% 25% 0% 2% 4% 4
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posts burnt in situ. Rather the pos
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When the charcoal is examined throu
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at Glenulra scatter. Alder was iden
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een freely available in the area. T
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References Byrne, G., Warren, G., W
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Verrill, L. and Tipping, R. 2010. U
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Table 3 Charcoal identifications fr
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Sample Date Ctg Context Description
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Sample Date Ctg Context Description
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Sample Trench Time period Descripti
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Table 7 Wood identification details
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Table 8 Charcoal identifications fr
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Cutting Sample Date Feature Descrip
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Table 8 Sample assessment Rathlacka
Page 91 and 92: Phase F. S. Trench Deposit type Loc
Page 93 and 94: Behy-Glenulra: Céide Fields visito
Page 95 and 96: A possible midden (B2P) contained a
Page 97 and 98: Wild remains Hazelnut shell fragmen
Page 99 and 100: References Beijerinck, W. 1947. Zad
Page 101 and 102: Verrill, L. and Tipping, R. 2010. A
Page 103 and 104: Soils and Geology Graeme Warren Thi
Page 105 and 106: Figure 3: overview of geological fe
Page 107 and 108: distinctive deposits and landscape
Page 109 and 110: Figure 4: major landuse categories.
Page 111 and 112: References ?? Soil Map of West Mayo
Page 113 and 114: The first scientific paper on late
Page 115 and 116: Also in the summer of 1963, fifty k
Page 117 and 118: the earth for the bank coming from
Page 119 and 120: dates from the macrofossil remains
Page 121 and 122: New Research and Researchers Over t
Page 123 and 124: Probed Surveys: Erris, Céide Field
Page 125 and 126: Iron probes of varying lengths had
Page 127 and 128: Céide hill twenty five years earli
Page 129 and 130: Survey on the Glenamoy - Bartnatra
Page 131 and 132: Bungurra River drains the Knocknalo
Page 133 and 134: The elevation of the tombs, all sit
Page 135 and 136: In 1936, 2 sub-rectangular cists, C
Page 137 and 138: Dooncarton Southwest slope 3.15 km
Page 139 and 140: The cross-section area occupied by
Page 141: No upper boundary was located on Kn
Page 145 and 146: The 2 court tombs, Ma38 and Ma23, l
Page 147 and 148: This void is substantiated by exami
Page 149 and 150: Survey from Ballinglen to Rathfran
Page 151 and 152: Lissadrone basin. The peat cover is
Page 153 and 154: Two similar large round cairns are
Page 155 and 156: Wall Gaps Because of concealment an
Page 157 and 158: supported by an orthostat visible u
Page 159 and 160: and with different building techniq
Page 161 and 162: Survey Illustrations: Figure 1: Ove
Page 163 and 164: Figure 4: Seefin walls with associa
Page 165 and 166: Figure 7: Walls from the study area
Page 167 and 168: Figure 8: Cabintown Site A. 161
Page 169 and 170: Figure 11: Rathlackan sites H12 Fig
Page 171 and 172: Figure 15: Creevagh H5, Figure 16:
Page 173: Figure 19: Carrowkibbock Upper H20.
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Neolithic and Bronze Age Landscapes of North Mayo: Report 2011

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