Monument record MHG52895 - Head dyke, Maligan, Achachork

During a walkover survey in December 2008 the remains of the head dyke were noted comprising a substantial turf and stone bank, up to 1.3m high and 2m wide at its base, in moderately good condition. The township comprises modern houses along a single track main road. <1>

A watching brief took place in June/July 2009 to record detailed sections of this dyke which was to be bisected by the proposed pipe trench. The trench passed through the dyke at two points. Initially the trench cut through at NG 4851 4577 (illustration 2). At this point the bank measures 2m wide and 0.60m high and is composed mainly of mid brown sandy/silt with occasional small to medium sized angular boulders and frequent pebble inclusions throughout. Within site 3, the pipeline missed the middle north-south section of the complex by about 1.5m. The pipeline passed through site 3 again at NGR: NG 4835 4587 (illustration 3). The bank here measured 1.90m wide and 0.47m high comprised mainly of dark brown silt with occasional large stones, measuring between 0.20m and 0.30m in diameter. <2>