Friday 16 August 2013

Day 2

It was a productive morning on site, with things starting to get quite interesting in the trenches. Unfortunately in the afternoon the rain set in and we were rained-off. In Trench 4 it still looks as if the large stones at the south-eastern end of the trench are structural, with occasional mortar now appearing between the stones. At the north-western end we appear to have two steeply-sloping banks constructed of highly compact earth and stone. Excavation of the fill between these features has unearthed a deep-filled rubbish pit containing 19th to 20th century detritus, probably used to rapidly fill the gully between the two banks. Amongst the artefacts recovered are the remains of a car door (!), some fine china, glass bottles from 'J. McAllister & Son of Ballymena' and a pair of old leather boots!

In the south-eastern end of Trench 3 there is a concentration of stones which may be the footings of a small building. Subsoil has been revealed in the middle of the trench and to the north-western extent there is a dark soil which may be the fill of a ditch. Tomorrow we are extending the trench, hoping to find the far side of this possible ditch.

Over in Trench 5 the cobbled surface has been removed revealing the underlying shattered bedrock surface.

It will be interesting to see what Friday brings. Let's hope the weather is better for digging!

No comments:

Post a Comment