Summer dig at ancient Derry site
A full archaeological dig will get underway later this year on the outskirts of Derry after an initial survey confirmed the existence of a set of 1000 year-old tunnels.
The three day survey at Gortinure Road, just outside the Co Derry village of Newbuildings, used Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) - the first time the technology has been used in the North - to pinpoint the tunnel's exact location.
The work, undertaken in late January by the Newbuildings and District Archaeological and Historical Society (NDAHS), is a precursor to a full archaeological dig scheduled for July.
NDAHS's Roger McCorkell said the GPR had unearthed a numbering of interesting features.
As the scanner was dragged back and forward across the field a number of features started to appear. A dog leg shaped feature running for about 12 metres was found.
"It was about one metre wide and at least one metre deep and about one metre across. This could be a souterrain.
“A second feature appeared. It seemed to be cavern with a dome shaped roof and was at least 3 metres across. A tunnel appeared to run away from the cavern for about five metres Another feature on the opposite side seemed to show what may be the entrance to the rath,” he said
A previous dig in 2005 examined the presence of a rath, or ancient fort in the area. The July dig, to be undertaken by Belfast Archaeologist firm, Gahan and Long, will focus on the souterrain - a term derived from the French word for underground.
It is thought the souterrain could have been built as a place of refuge in a time when Vikings would have carried out raids along the banks of the Foyle.
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Weather for Derry
Sunday 27 May 2012
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