Location
License No.
Description
Work on properties 17 – 19A Popes Quay, adjacent to this site, at the west, uncovered sediments believed to be of 18th-century date. These sediments were considered likely to have been disturbed and redeposited rather than remaining in situ. Monitoring of groundworks took place sporadically between 27 November and 13 December 2001. Monitoring revealed no deposits or artefactual material likely to be archaeological in nature. The only exception to this may be the lower courses of a wall recorded on the south-western boundary of the site, which has in any case been left in its original position. Testing was carried out at the rear of the properties before redevelopment. The houses at the front of the properties are being retained. Three trenches were mechanically excavated. Deposits of archaeological significance were not revealed in any of the trenches; however, occasional fragments of human bone were identified in the mixed upper deposit of Trench 1 at the eastern side of the site. This deposit comprised garden soil with rubble inclusions. These bones did not represent in situ burials. It is likely that they derived from soil from the disused cemetery of St Mary’s, Shandon, which is now a children’s playground situated on the cliff directly above the development site. A substantial amount of material from the cemetery collapsed onto the site during the mid-20th century, resulting in the collapse of a building to the rear of the site. All further ground reduction on the site will be monitored. Monitoring was carried out on the site following the assessment carried out during 2002, when fragmentary human remains were revealed on the site (Excavations 2002, No. 284). During monitoring of ground reduction, a cache of 60 homemade hand grenades were found, which probably date to the War of Independence. This appears to be the largest single cache of such grenades found in the Munster area dating to this period. No other features or finds were revealed. Shandon is in the northern suburbs of the medieval walled city of Cork, separated from the old city by the northern branch of the River Lee but connected to it by the North Gate Bridge (now, officially, Griffith Bridge). The Shandon Area Streetscape Renewal Scheme, which began in April 2003, comprises the insertion of various services ducts and the renewal of the street and pavements on Church Street, Farren’s Quay and Shandon Street. The southern portion of the scheme is within the area of the historic city of Cork (SMR 74:34(01)) and the northern section is within the area of the medieval suburbs (SMR 74:122). The work on Church Street and Farren’s Quay has been completed but work on Shandon Street is ongoing. Street Church Street leads east from Shandon Street to St Anne’s Church, an 18th- century building on the site of the medieval church of St Mary’s Church
13 –15 Pope’s Quay, Cork
02E0895
13 –15 Pope’s Quay, Cork
02E0895
Shandon Street/Church Street/Farren’s Quay, Cork
02E1378
Integrated Urban Strategy, Shandon, Cork Baseline archaeological assessment
28
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