In 2003, archaeologists investigating the proposed route of the Waterford City Bypass on behalf of Ireland's National Roads Authority discovered the remains of a 9th century Viking settlement on the southern bank of the River Suir at Woodstown, County Waterford. The discovery has been hailed as one of the most significant made by Irish archaeologists in modern times. This book is the definitive report on the archaeological excavations undertaken at Woodstown, as it draws together all the existing evidence from the site and places it in its national and international context.
Author(s): Ian Russell, Maurice F. Hurley, James Eogan (eds.)
Publisher: Four Courts Press
Year: 2014
Language: English
Pages: 438
City: Dublin
Contributors ix
Acknowledgments x
Abbreviations xi
Preface by David Griffiths, University of Oxford xiii
Foreword by Cllr James Tobin, Cathaoirleach Waterford City and County Council xvi
Foreword by Heather Humphreys TD, Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht xvii
Foreword by Fred Barry, Chief Executive, National Roads Authority xix
Executive summary by Maurice F. Hurley xx
Chapter 1. Introduction by Maurice F. Hurley and Ian Russell 1
Chapter 2. Historical background by Stephen H. Harrison 11
Chapter 3. Physical environment and geophysics 21
3.1 Geology, geomorphology and palaeoenvironment by Susan Hegarty 21
3.2 Geophysical survey by James Bonsall and Ian Russell 24
Chapter 4. The excavation by Ian Russell 28
4.1 Viking-period enclosures 28
4.2 Viking-period features within Enclosure One 34
4.3 Viking-period features within Enclosure Two 54
4.4 Viking-period features outside the enclosures 76
4.5 Viking burial 80
4.6 Prehistoric period 81
4.7 Post-medieval and modern period 82
Chapter 5. Discussion of the Viking burial by Stephen H. Harrison 90
Chapter 6. Discussion of metalworking evidence by Tim Young 103
Chapter 7. Metal 115
7.1a Ferrous and non-ferrous metal by Cathy Johnson 115
7.1b Ferrous and non-ferrous metal by Órla Scully 125
7.2 Nails by Jan Bill 141
7.3 Weapons and grave-goods by Stephen H. Harrison 155
7.4 Cast and gilt copper alloy by Raghnall Ó Floinn, with a contribution by Cormac Bourke 172
7.5 Silver by John Sheehan 194
7.6 Weights by Patrick F. Wallace 222
7.7 Perforated lead and stone discs by Richard O’Brien 255
7.8a Numismatic finds: coins by Michael Kenny 259
7.8b Numismatic finds: Islamic silver dirham fragments by Gert Rispling 259
Chapter 8. Ceramics, glass and amber 263
8.1a Ceramics: pottery by Clare McCutcheon 263
8.1b Ceramics: fragments by Justine Bayley 266
8.1c Ceramics: crucibles and cupels by Tim Young 267
8.2 Glass by Cecily Cropper 282
8.3 Amber by Paula Harvey 285
Chapter 9. Stone 289
9.1 Lithics by Farina Sternke 289
9.2 Stone by Anne Carey 299
9.3 Lignite, cannel coal and oil shale jewellery by Fraser Hunter and Alison Sheridan 320
Chapter 10. Organic materials 325
10.1 Antler and bone by Ian Riddler and Nicola Trzaska Nartowski 325
10.2 Textiles by Elizabeth Wincott Heckett 331
Chapter 11. Human and faunal remains 339
11.1 Human remains by Patrick Randolph-Quinney 339
11.2a Faunal remains: burnt bone by Patrick Randolph-Quinney 341
11.2b Faunal remains: burnt bone by Anwen Caffell and Louisa Gidney 344
Chapter 12. Discussion and conclusions by Maurice F. Hurley 347
Appendices 359
1. Radiocarbon dating 359
1.1 Charcoal identifications by Ellen OCarroll 359
1.2 Catalogue of radiocarbon dates by James Eogan 360
2. Summary of assessment of Killoteran Stream marsh by James Eogan 364
2.1 Archaeogeophysical prospecting 364
2.2 Palaeonenvironmental coring 365
2.3 Test Excavations 365
3. Summary of intertidal and underwater archaeological surveys by James Eogan 367
4. Petrography of two hones by Susan Hegarty 370
5. Conservation of finds 372
5.1 Conservation of grave-goods; ferrous and non-ferrous by Claudia Köhler 372
5.2 Conservation of non-ferrous objects by Susannah Kelly 383
5.3 X-radiography of iron by Susannah Kelly 384
Bibliography 387
Index 407
