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Flint scatter and occupation layer at Coleraine is a prehistoric site preserving evidence of early human activity in the lower Bann valley. The monument consists of scattered worked flint and an occupation horizon located on bedrock formed from Palaeogene volcanic rocks—mafic lavas and tuffs that would have been naturally weathered and accessible to prehistoric communities. The geological substrate would have provided reliable flint sources for tool manufacture, making this locality attractive for sustained occupation during the Stone Age.
The site's survival as a discrete scatter with identifiable occupation deposits indicates settlement activity of sufficient duration to leave stratified archaeological evidence. The proximity to the Bann river system, which dominates the local landscape, would have provided essential freshwater and access to aquatic resources critical to prehistoric subsistence. Such riverine locations were consistently favoured settlement zones throughout prehistory in northern Britain and Ireland.
The monument is protected by the Historic Environment Division of the Department for Communities, recorded under reference 13934. The flint assemblage and occupation layers remain in situ, offering potential for future archaeological investigation to establish the chronology and character of settlement at this location within the broader context of prehistoric activity in the north-eastern Irish landscape.
Flint scatter and occupation layer is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 13934. View the official record →
Flint scatter and occupation layer at Coleraine is a prehistoric site preserving evidence of early human activity in the lower Bann valley. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 13934.
Flint scatter and occupation layer dates from the prehistoric period, and is classified as a occupation site. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Flint scatter and occupation layer is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Ni. The official designation reference is 13934.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Standing stone (3.1 km), Cashlandoo. raised rath (4.1 km), Dunmull. hillfort, bullaun and well (5.3 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Flint scatter and occupation layer's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Flint scatter and occupation layer stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Palaeogene, bedrock that formed in the Paleogene. The rock here is mafic lava and mafic tuff.