(Follow-on article -Unique discovery of a set of prehistoric pipes, thought to be from a musical instrument. 17.05.04)

Introduction
The townland of Charlesland is located directly to the south of the coastal village of Greystones, Co. Wicklow. Archaeological excavation and monitoring has been on-going since December 2002 on a residential and mixed-use development. The majority of the excavation works were carried out on behalf of Ballymore Properties and Mountbrook Homes. Site 1B was excavated on behalf of Valley Developments and Sinead Phelan (Margaret Gowen and Co. Ltd) excavated Site 1C on behalf of Brian M. Durkan Ltd. All excavations were carried out under licence to the National Monuments Division and the National Museum.
To date seventeen archaeological sites (drawing of site locations PDF 1MB) have been excavated with archaeological evidence ranging in date from the Neolithic to the Medieval Period. Post-excavation analysis is on-going and these findings are of a preliminary nature only. The findings are discussed below in chronological order.

Neolithic/Early Bronze Age
The Neolithic in Ireland dates from between 4000BC-2500BC. Several sherds of pottery from the Western Neolithic Tradition (c3750-3500BC) were retrieved from a small hearth on Site D. Beaker pottery (c2500-2300BC) from a pit on Site A and a barbed and tanged arrowhead from Site J combined with the Neolithic pottery from Site A would suggest very sporadic settlement in the Neolithic and Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age periods.

Bronze Age
The Bronze Age in Ireland dates from between 2300BC and 500 BC. Most of the sites excavated in Charlesland can be dated tentatively to the Bronze Age, based on the artefact assemblage and site type.

Settlement Evidence
Two Bronze Age structures were excavated on Site D, which was located on an eastern facing slope with extensive views to the Irish Sea. Structure 1  measured approx. 9m in internal diameter and was constructed of a single row of posts with occasional associated inner postholes, which may have been added at some stage for repair. There was also a central roof support and a gap in the postholes along the south-eastern edge of the structure that was suggestive of an entrance. Pottery and cremated bone was found within a number of the postholes, which may have been placed as a votive offering. Structure 2, located to the southwest of Structure I had an internal diameter of approx 10m. It was constructed from a single row of postholes. There was no evidence for a central roof support. Several postholes yielded evidence of charred cereal grains, predominantly barley. The presence of cereal grains, a quern stone  in close proximity to this structure and the proximity of this structure to a pit, which contained two saddle querns, could suggest that this structure was a storage area for cereal or for the production of cereal. A large number of pits, stakeholes and postholes, as well as a cobbled area was found in association with these structures.


A possible structure was also recorded at Site G, which was located at the break of slope of an eastern facing gradually sloping hill. This site has been carbon - dated to 1444-1262 B.C. This structure measured 8m (N-S) by 7.40m. There was no evidence for a central roof support and this structure may not have been roofed. It is comparable to Structure 2 in Site D in that it may have been associated with the production of cereal. The analysis of the charred plant remains by Penny Johnson revealed some very interesting results. A large cache of cereal grains from a posthole contained an exceptionally high number of charred cereal grains, which had no weed seeds present. Johnson suggests that this deposit was very carefully processed, and that such attention to detail is unusual and the grain may have been prepared for a specific purpose. Pits excavated on the site may have been used for grain storage. A saddle quern was also found in association with this site.
A tenuous structure was also excavated at Site 1B. No artefacts were retrieved from this site in the course of excavation, but the arrangement of features could point to the remains of a structure. Further analysis will be possible once the results of C14 dating and environmental results is available.

Burial Evidence
Site F was located on the summit of an east-facing slope. Topsoil stripping exposed a ring ditch, a large cremation pit, a structure and clusters of stakeholes and postholes.

The ring ditch enclosed an area measuring 5.60m (N-S) by 5.39m. The ditch had an average depth of 0.55m. Nine fragments of worked flint were found within the fill of the ditch, but there was no evidence of any burial within the ditch. The remains of a mound were visible within the enclosed area and it is unlikely that the site was considerably truncated. This would indicate that ring ditch did not have a burial function and may have had a marking or symbolic purpose.

The cremation pit excavated yielded a high concentration of cremated bone, which was highly crushed and powdered. This is indicative of a Bronze Age burial tradition. There appears to have been a continual process of deposition of cremated bone and charcoal within this pit, which is compounded by the oxidisation around the edges of the pit. The funerary remains may have been deposited directly from a pyre. A large granite boulder, which protruded from the top of the pit is likely to have been a marking stone.  A funerary urn, which contained a lot of cremated bone, was found in a small pit, directly to the east of the cremation pit.
A small structure was also identified on this site. It was visible as a small circular hut with a southeast facing entrance. The structure measured 1.98m by 2.30m and there was evidence of a central posthole. The location of this structure in such close proximity to the ring ditch and cremation pit suggests that it was not domestic in function. A circular row of postholes may have formed a palisade around the structure, which may have had a demarcation purpose rather than a defensive one.

Fulacht Fiadh
A large number (nine in total) were excavated within the development zone. This was not surprising given the topography along the eastern boundary of the site was low-lying and boggy in parts. Extensive land reclamation and drainage carried out by previous land owners meant that many of these sites were considerably truncated and disturbed.
An extraordinary find from one of these sites, a set of musical pipes found at the base of a beautifully preserved wooden trough, is discussed by Margaret Gowen elsewhere on this website. Click here

Other Bronze Age sites
A number of other Bronze Age sites were excavated within the development zone, which does not fit into the above categories.
A number of Bronze Age pottery sherds were retrieved from postholes and linear features excavated on Site K. No structure was discernible or particular arrangement of the features was noted on this site.
A large curving ditch was excavated at Site A. A cremation pit and a large number of pits and postholes were excavated at this site. It is difficult to ascertain a definite function for this site. The fact that a late Bronze Age socketed axe-head  and Beaker pottery (Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age) would suggest this site was inhabited sporadically during the Bronze Age.

Early Medieval Period
The Early Medieval Period in Ireland dates from 500AD to 1100AD. There was scant evidence for early medieval activity amongst the sites excavated at Charlesland.
Site 1A has been dated tentatively to this period by the excavator but the results of carbon dating will place this site in a more secure context. Two large semi-circular ditches excavated contained a high density of animal bone, metal slag and one fragment of iron. The Three Trouts Stream bound this site to the north. No evidence for settlement was found within the enclosures and they may have been cattle enclosures.