Moynagh Lough

Studies 1

Michael Potterton, editor

Moynagh Lough is one of the most important archaeological sites ever excavated in Ireland. Situated in the rolling terrain of north Co. Meath, it preserves an extraordinary record of human activity extending from prehistory to the early medieval period. Excavated between 1980 and 1998 under the direction of John Bradley (d. 2014), the site yielded a remarkable range of artefacts and environmental evidence from Mesolithic, Neolithic, Bronze Age and medieval contexts. The waterlogged conditions ensured the survival of materials rarely preserved elsewhere, offering exceptional insights into everyday life, craft production, trade, diet and the environment across thousands of years.

Although Bradley published a series of interim reports and pioneering studies, the full significance of the excavation has only become clearer through renewed research undertaken since the re-establishment of the Moynagh Lough Project in 2018. This volume represents the first book-length study devoted to the site and brings together eighteen essays by leading specialists from Ireland and abroad.

The contributors examine subjects as diverse as metalworking, textiles, leather, lithics and artefacts of bone and antler, alongside specialist analyses of charcoal and wood, archaeobotanical remains, coprolites, dendrochronology and isotopic evidence. Among the many remarkable discoveries discussed is a rare ogam-inscribed antler, offering a fascinating glimpse into literacy and communication in early medieval Ireland. Other chapters explore Moynagh Lough’s wider landscape, its place among Ireland’s early medieval high-status sites, its international connections, and its enduring legacy for the local community through the development of the Nobber Cultural and Heritage Centre.

Richly illustrated and drawing on the latest archaeological and scientific research, Moynagh Lough Studies 1 marks an important milestone in the publication of one of Ireland's most remarkable archaeological discoveries.

Contributors: Maximilien Agnes; Laura Basell; Lydia Beckett; Edel Bhreathnach; Niall Brady; Anne Crone; Henry Cruise; Darcie Eastham; George Fogarty; Eleanor Joan Green; Samantha Greeves; Richard Hagan; Jessica Hendy; Thomas Herron; Dolores Kearney; Mikołaj Lisowski; Janet Montgomery; Deborah Nagle; John Nicholl; G.M. Nowell; Lorna O’Donnell; Brendan O’Neill; Kirsty Penkman; Michael Potterton; P.J. Reimer; Billy Sines; Jonathan Small; Camilla Speller; David Stifter; David Stone; Nathan Wales; Graeme Warren; Lucy Wheeler; Averil White.

Michael Potterton is an associate professor in the Department of History at Maynooth University. Since 2018 he has been the Director and Principal Investigator of the Moynagh Lough Project (Phase 3). He has published more than fifty books as author or editor, most of them relating to the archaeology and history of medieval Ireland.