Early medieval Nit combs are 'nothing new'

28 July BBC

It's official ... even ancient folk needed a nit comb.A fine tooth comb is among treasures uncovered at an excavation site near Enniskillen, County Fermanagh.

Arrow heads, pottery and ancient human remains have been found at the crannog a kind of artificial island which could date back more than 1,000 years.

The site is being cleared to allow for a new road, but archaeologists have been given time to glean all they can before the bulldozers move in."

The Cherrymount link crannog was thought initially to date back to the 14th century but now evidence suggests it went back to early medieval times," said archaeologist Declan Hurl."We've found human remains. This was a burial elsewhere that had been removed and for some reason brought to this site and re-buried on the crannog.

"Why the body was buried there is one of the many mysteries that remain unsolved including why the crannog was built here in the first place."It may have been some sort of seasonal site where people would have gone to catch fish or hunt wild fowl.

"The crannog was originally thought to be 700 years old, but fragments of pottery found at the site date from as far back as the ninth century.

Other finds include the bone comb once used by an image conscious lough dweller and a metal blade which is still sharp after hundreds of years.A leather shoe was found that had been preserved in the earth.Arrowheads dating from the Bronze Age were also discovered.

"It is always exciting to see a beautifully made artefact," said Mr Hurl.

"Crannogs are quite numerous in Fermanagh but the excavations are like hens' teeth so it is great to be given an opportunity to look at this particular one - It is always an eye opener."Some archaeologists are concerned about the apparent imminent destruction of the crannog. The Institute for Archaeologists has raised a series of questions about the site with the Northern Ireland Environment Agency.Roads Service manager Seamus Keenan: "If we had known the crannog was in the area at the early stages we would have done everything we could to avoid it.

In this case, we are dealing with an area which is a water logged bog essentially. It was only late in the day that we realised that the crannog was right there in the road line."

Given that the road will be built over it, the archaeologists have been granted more time to unearth the site's secrets and the Roads Service is paying for the excavation.But soon, the crannog and whatever secrets it still hugs to itself, will lie beneath people's feet.