The exceptional archaeological and palaeoenvironmental potential of Irish peatlands, and specifically the lowland raised mires of the midlands, has long been recognised with a diverse range of artefacts and sites discovered as a result of drainage and peat cutting. These include well-known sites such as the Iron Age ‘roadway’ of Corlea, Co. Longford, ‘bog bodies’ and a wealth of artefacts and archaeological sites from the Mesolithic right up to recent times. A review commissioned by the National Monuments Service calculated that in the last 20 years around 4000 archaeological monuments have been identified in the lowland raised mires subject to industrial peat extraction by the semi-state owned body, Bord na Móna (Gearey et al., 2013). The high numbers and the range of known sites and finds demonstrate that Irish raised mires are the richest known repositories of archaeological knowledge in peatlands the world over, but also a resource that will ultimately be largely destroyed through on-going peat extraction, with very few sites preserved in-situ. Given this situation, the archaeological programme of work intended to ‘preserve by record’ is critical. This was recognised in the late 1980s and early 1990s and resulted in almost two decades of survey and excavation financed via public and semi-state monies. The situation was such that Professor John Coles felt able to state that: “… opportunity has been seized and wetland research prospers.” (Coles, 2001:9). This paper will present a critical analysis of developments in Irish peatland archaeology over the last decade and a half, outlining key data from the review and considering why and how opportunity has been lost.

References

Coles, J. (2001) Irish wetland archaeology: from opprobrium to opportunity. In B. Raftery and J. Hickey (eds) Recent Developments in Wetland Research. Dublin: UCD Dept of Archaeology and WARP, 1-13.

Gearey, B.R., Bermingham, N., Moore, C. and Van de Noort, R. (2013) Review of Archaeological Survey and Mitigation Policy Relating to Bord na Móna Peatlands Since 1990. Report to the National Monuments Service, Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.