IRELAND’S history may not be written in stone after all.
A team of archaeologists working at a coastal site in north County Dublin has made a discovery that is being hailed as a milestone in Irish archaeology: the first fully intact Roman pot ever uncovered on the island.
The find was made at the Drumanagh promontory fort near the village of Loughshinny.
Christine Baker, Fingal County Council’s Heritage Officer and lead archaeologist on the excavation, described the moment of discovery as extraordinary.
“We’re breathless with the sheer excitement of it all,” she said in a statement. “This is the first time a complete Roman pot has been excavated in Ireland. We’ve found fragments before, amphora necks, shards, but nothing like this.”
Though the Roman Empire never conquered lands in Ireland, this discovery adds to growing evidence of cross-cultural trade.
“While there’s no indication of a Roman settlement here,” Baker said, “we’re seeing clear signs of sustained contact. Trade, influence, maybe even a Roman presence overseeing commerce, it’s all beginning to take shape through what we’re uncovering.”
Drumanagh, which lies on a 46-acre headland fortified by earthen ramparts, has drawn a lot of interest in recent years over its geographic and historic significance.
Yet, only in recent years have scientific excavations taken place. The Digging Drumanagh project, which began in 2018, aims to uncover the site’s historical layers with help from the local community.
In its first excavation season in 2018, archaeologists discovered Iron Age deposits and human remains from the late prehistoric period, suggesting activity at the site hundreds of years before Roman contact.
Since then, annual digs have revealed signs of textile and craft production and dozens of Roman pottery fragments alongside Roman-British artefacts such as glass beads and vessels.
Recent digs have also uncovered grain-storage pits later used as refuse dumps and a variety of bone tools. One particularly exciting find was a Roman-style die.
In 2024, during post-excavation analysis, another rare item was found: a charred fig, initially mistaken for a small apple. Later confirmed by archaeobotanist Professor Meriel McClatchie, the 2,000-year-old fruit is the earliest known example of an exotic Roman import to Ireland.
Figs, which were often dried before being transported, were a staple in a Roman’s diet. Its discovery offers further proof of Roman goods reaching Irish shores through their vast trade networks.
The newly found intact pot has been moved to the National Museum of Ireland, where conservation work and further analysis continue.
Dr. John Waddell, an expert in Irish archaeology and a member of the Royal Irish Academy, wrote in a blog post, “This discovery at Drumanagh is a game-changer. It provides tangible evidence of Roman presence and influence in Ireland, not just through trade goods but through the artefacts themselves.”
The ancient fig discovered at the site (Photo by Fingal County Council)