Dublin City Archaeological Archive/Judith Carroll Excavations 2007 – 2010 Collection

Context

Creator(s): Judith Carroll and Co Ltd

• Administrative History ↴

  Judith Carroll and Company, Archaeological Consultants (11-13 Anglesea Street, Temple Bar, Dublin 2) are a group of professional archaeologists based in Dublin but working countrywide. They offer a wide range of archaeological services to both public and private clients; carrying out excavations, assessments, trial testing and monitoring for developments of all scales. Judith Carroll and Co. have produced a number of publications including "Dublin city: sources for archaeologists" (2003) and reports on excavations at Balrothery, Co. Dublin (2008). Judith Carroll and Co. carry out archaeological investigations under the Planning and Development Acts (2000) and the National Monuments Acts and Amendments (1930-2004). This collection encompasses a number of archaeological investigations carried out in Dublin city by Judith Carroll and Co. Ltd. between 2007-2010. It includes the following sites: 07E0949 - Coke Lane, Smithfield, Dublin 7 Trial testing was carried out prior to the construction of an office/retail development at 9 Coke Lane, Dublin 7, in October and November 2007. The area of the development was situated within the constraint area of medieval Dublin, DU018–020. The only feature of interest from the site was a red-brick tunnel, 2.5m in height and 1.25m in width, with plastered wall and a flat stone floor. The tunnel was comparable to other examples, mainly of 18th-century date. Though it was found close to the river inlet prior to the 18th century, it did not look like a drain or sewer nor did it contain the sort of silt stratigraphy which would be expected if this were the case. Its flat floor would suggest it was intended as some sort of access route. It was, however, puzzling, as there is no large house or estate in line with it. It is possible that it was used as an access to the river at some stage. Excavation of the tunnel was undertaken in November 2007. The presence of a stairway ascending from the tunnel to the south, towards the rear of the existing buildings on Arran Quay, suggests that the tunnel may have been directly connected to a building that existed on the site previously. The stairway was built by laying bricks on a bed of tightly compacted soil. A clay-pipe bowl dating to the first half of the 18th century and a single sherd of gravel-tempered ware, which generally dates to the 17th century, were found in this soil. The fill of the tunnel contained numerous ceramic vessels. These were contained within the fill of the base layer, which also contained a high proportion of congealed ink and numerous larger ceramic bottles and jugs. A number of jugs bore the maker’s mark ‘J. Bourne, Denby, Derbyshire’ and were dated to the latter half of the 19th century. The main function of the tunnel at 9 Coke Lane appears to have been access, both to the building at the rear of the development site and to some point eastward of it. Unfortunately, the limits of the development site did not allow any further excavation to the east, but it can be assumed that the tunnel connected the quay-facing building to some other building, or that it was a trade or staff entrance of some kind. 08E0098 - Inchicore National School Trial testing was carried out at Inchicore National School in February 2008 in advance of the construction of a new school building to the rear of the playground. A total of four trenches were excavated, including one long centreline trench. A fifth trench was also due to be opened on the west side of the school but due to the presence of pipes and unidentified services this was not possible. In the four trenches opened no finds or features of archaeological significance came to light. 08E0612 - Irish Cone & Wafer Factory, Kilmainham Trial testing was carried out in July 2008 of a new residential development at a site north and south of the Cammock River (also known as Camac) consisting of 6 Kilmainham Lane and the former Irish Cone and Wafer factory, Kilmainham, Dublin 8. The development was situated within DU 018–020 (Medieval Dublin). It was not possible to test the site at 6 Kilmainham Lane due to the sheer topography of the site. It was also only possible to test within the former Irish Cone and Wafer factory building, due to the presence of services and a public space area outside the structure. In total three test-trenches were opened within the building. In the three trenches opened no finds or features of archaeological significance came to light. 08E0628 - King's Inns, Henrietta Street The area of the planned development was situated within the constraint area of medieval Dublin, DU018–020. The development involved the demolition of a 20th-century garage and adjoining boundary walls and the construction of gravel and cobbled hard landscape creating nine car parking spaces, a driveway and a path. The site of the proposed car park was situated to the rear of the King’s Inn Library on Henrietta Street and was part of the grounds of the Honourable Society of the King’s Inns. Topsoil-stripping in the area in July 2008 yielded no results of archaeological significance. 09E0066 - 19 Santry Villas, Santry Groundwork relating to the construction of a detached two-storey house at 19 Santry Villas, Dublin 9, was monitored on 14 October 2010. The development site in Santry Village (though shown to be on a greenfield site without features on Roque’s map of 1760, Duncan’s map of 1821 and the first-edition OS map of 1837–43) is close to the medieval church of St. Pappan (DU014–05701), a font (DU014–05701) and a holy well (DU014–05701), as well as the graveyard (DU014–05701). It is in close proximity to the north side of the enclosure, DU014–05701, a portion of which exists within the graveyard. This enclosure may represent an early enclosure relating to the 6th-century foundation of St. Pappan in Santry. A tracked ‘mini-digger’ was used to dig the foundation trenches for the new dwelling. The building was designed as a compact structure, occupying a relatively confined garden plot along the east side of No. 19. The foundation trenches consisted of a rectilinear outline measuring approximately 11m long (north–south) by 5m wide, encompassing the external footprint of the proposed structure. The trench was 0.8m wide by up to 0.5m deep and was dug through loose dark-grey/brown topsoil with a small amount of stone, and flecks of brick and mortar. No finds or features came to light during monitoring of the site and no further recommendations for archaeological work were made.

• Archival History ↴

  Transferred by Judith Carroll to Dublin City Archives 26 February 2014

• Immediate Source Acquisition ↴

  Donation