The results of the Temple Bar West excavations placed the emphasis of ninth-century settlement along the Liffey frontage but a small site at Ship Street Great (2002), outside the Viking town in the southern suburb, unexpectedly produced ninth-century evidence, which refocused our attention somewhat on another major topographical feature of Dublin, the large natural pool on the Poddle watercourse, in the southern suburb. This pool, which gave Dublin (Dubh-linn) its name, must have been close to the site of the monastery, the outline of which is possibly preserved in the curving street alignment of Whitefriar Street, Stephen Street and Peter’s Row, which lies directly south of the pool. The earliest archaeological evidence to date for settlement in this area also comes from close to the west bank of the pool where excavations at the church site of St Michael le Pole (built c. 1100) revealed domestic deposits, which could be dated to the eighth century (Gowen 2001).
The site at Ship Street Great, directed by the writer, had been very badly damaged by cellars and only a small strip survived revealing industrial and domestic activity, which could be dated from the late twelfth century onwards. At one end of the site however, there was a freak survival of a Viking burial, which had been almost completely removed by an eighteenth-century cellar (Fig. 6). Figure 6.
The fragmentary survival consisted of part of the upper torso of a young male, aged about 25 years, who was in a shallow grave in a supine position.iv There were four objects of personal jewellery found around the neck, a silver finger ring, a twisted silver ring, a decorated bead and a very corroded iron disk (Fig. 7). A study of the surrounding soil also produced a solid fragment of iron, which on examination by x-ray, was identified as part of the blade of a pattern-welded sword.v A fragment of bone was then sent off for dating and this produced an early Viking date, which had a 95% probability of dating to between AD 665 and AD 865.vi The dating confirmed what was already suspected, that this was most likely to be an individual Viking warrior burial, similar to approximately five other suspected warrior burials found dotted around Dublin in the nineteenth century, the closet one of which was found at Bride Street, a short distance to the west of the site.vii
