Penycloddiau Cairn, Flintshire - Clwyd-Powys ... · CPAT Report No. 932 Penycloddiau Cairn, Flintshire ... Within the interior the topography is undulating, ... Canadian Army, Prospect,

CPAT Report No 932

Penycloddiau Cairn, Flintshire

ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVALUATION

THE CLWYD-POWYS ARCHAEOLOGICAL TRUST

CPAT Report No 932

Penycloddiau Cairn, Flintshire

ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVALUATION

I Grant and N W Jones June 2008

Report for Denbighshire County Council

The Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust 7a Church Street, Welshpool, Powys, SY21 7DL

tel (01938) 553670, fax (01938) 552179 © CPAT 2008

CPAT Report Record Report and status CPAT Report Title Penycloddiau Cairn, Flintshire: Archaeological Evaluation CPAT Project Name Penycloddiau Cairn CPAT Project No 1525 CPAT Report No 932 Confidential (yes/no) Yes draft/final Final Internal control

Revisions no date made by checked by approved by Internal memo The Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust 7a Church Street Welshpool Powys SY21 7DL tel (01938) 553670, fax 552179 © CPAT

CPAT Report No. 932 Penycloddiau Cairn, Flintshire Archaeological Evaluation

CONTENTS

1 INTRODUCTION 2 LOCATION, TOPOGRAPHY AND GEOLOGY 3 ARCHAEOLOGICAL BACKGROUND 4 EVALUATION 5 CONCLUSIONS 6 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 7 REFERENCES APPENDIX 1 PROJECT ARCHIVE

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1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 The Field Services Section of the Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust (CPAT) was invited by

Denbighshire Countryside Service to undertake the archaeological evaluation of a small cairn within the scheduled area of Penycloddiau Hillfort.

1.2 The cairn is presently being eroded by the Offa’s Dyke long distance footpath and the

evaluation was proposed to determine the nature, condition and significance of the cairn to inform on future management proposals. Given the location of the cairn on the highest point of Penycloddiau it had previously been suggested that it may be a small Bronze Age burial monument.

2 LOCATION, TOPOGRAPHY AND GEOLOGY 2.1 Penycloddiau lies on the central ridge, between the Wheeler Valley and the Vale of Clwyd,

which at this point rises to an altitude of around 440m OD. The summit of the hill, at the northern end of the hillfort, is surmounted by the putative Bronze Age burial cairn (SJ 1271367886; Plate 1).

cairn

Plate 1 View of the northern end of Penycloddiau, showing the Offa’s Dyke footpath and the cairn just

inside the ramparts. Photo CPAT 06-c-357 2.2 The solid geology of the area consists of Silurian siltsones and mudstones (1994 British

Geological Survey map), overlain by well-drained loams and thin peat (1983 Soil Survey of England and Wales map).

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3 ARCHAEOLOGICAL BACKGROUND 3.1 Penycloddiau (PRN 102273; SAM Fl009) is one of the largest hillforts in Wales and is the

largest of the six hillforts in the Clwydians, lying on the central ridge. The hillfort is multivallate, with a continuous inner rampart and discontinuous outer rampart, together with additional outer defences at the northern end.

3.2 The northern end of the hillfort was subject to a total station survey by CPAT in 2000 in

connection with erosion control works along the Offa’s Dyke footpath, which follows the ridge through the hillfort. Further detailed survey work was undertaken by CPAT in April 2004 over an area of around 7ha within the interior which was affected by a serious heather burn in April 2003 (Jones 2004a). Subsequent aerial reconnaissance by the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales (RCAHMW) helped to define the extent of the heather burning and also revealed the potential for newly revealed interior features. A final phase of survey was undertaken in 2006, covering those area of the hillfort which had not been surveyed previously (Jones 2006).

cairn

entrance

entrance

Fig. 1 Digital terrain model of Penycloddiau showing the location of the cairn

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3.3 A condition survey was also undertaken by CPAT in 2004 (Jones 2004b) covering the entire area of the hillfort. The survey noted significant active erosion of the potential burial cairn on the summit, which is crossed by the main footpath, and proposed a trial excavation to determine the condition and significance of the cairn.

3.4 The interior of the hillfort occupies 19.8ha, while the circuit of the main rampart extends for

1.93km. The hillfort occupies a prominent position crowning a large hilltop, the axis of which is north-west to south-east. Within the interior the topography is undulating, with a series of low ridges and hollows running roughly north-east to south-west, the ground falling by around 44m from the highest point inside the northern ramparts to the southern entrance.

Hillfort entrances 3.5 Penycloddiau has two original entrances, and there are a number of more recent breaks in the

defences. The southern entrance guards the approach from the col between Penycloddiau and Moel Arthur. The eastern entrance lies approximately midway along the eastern defences, c.500m from the southern entrance. This has inturned banks, together with an additional outer defence which flanks the southern side of the approach at the top of a steep-sided, dry valley.

3.6 In general the ramparts are fairly well preserved and much of the circuit comprises a single,

often very substantial rampart with an internal quarry ditch and an external ditch, sometimes with a counterscarp. The defences were augmented with additional banks and ditches in association with both entrances, as well as where the topography lessened the natural defences of the hilltop. This is particularly so at the northern end of the hillfort where the defences are more elaborate.

Internal features and occupation 3.7 Within the hillfort interior the survey has identified 33 certain or potential round-hut platforms

which have visible earthworks, most of them are terraced into the natural hill slope. In addition, a number of areas have been identified where it is considered likely that huts could have been located as a result of their sheltered position and the relatively level ground. A further 49 roughly circular hollows have been identified in the lee of the ramparts which could have contained huts, together with a number of less convincing hollows which may simply be quarry scoops for the construction of the rampart.

3.8 Excluding those within the quarry ditch, the round-hut platforms form three main groups on the

north-eastern side of the hillfort, each taking advantage of the local topography to exploit the most sheltered positions. In the north-east corner of the hillfort six potential platforms were identified occupying a natural hollow, while to the south-east a further seven were located close to two shallow, seasonal ponds and within an adjacent hollow to the east. A small artificial pond was also recorded within the latter group, possibly having been excavated as a well. A further group of eight platforms was identified close to the farm track, one on the north-west side and the rest to the south-east.

3.9 In the centre of the hillfort two potential platforms were identified on the south and east sides of

a low natural rise, with a further two possible sites located near the south-east corner. On the western side of the hillfort a single platform was recorded overlooking an area where the quarry ditch was thought to contain a number of potential hut sites.

3.10 The majority of the hillfort interior has a thin peat covering which has presumably developed

since the Iron Age and this, together with an element of hill wash, has in part masked some of the archaeological features within the area. Combined with the dense heather it is therefore not surprising that most of the features revealed by the survey had not been previously recognised.

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Plate 2 The summit cairn before excavation showing footpath erosion

Summit cairn 3.11 The highest point of Penycloddiau is occupied by a small cairn (PRN 102277) which is being

actively eroded by the Offa’s Dyke footpath on the east side. It has been suggested that it may be a denuded Bronze Age burial cairn. Indeed, in the 19th-century account of the hillfort in Topographical Dictionary of Wales Samuel Lewis recorded that ‘in the centre of the camp is a large tumulus’. Ellis Davies (1949, 273), however, favoured an interpretation of the cairn as a boundary marker between the parishes of Ysceifiog and Llandyrnog. An inspection of the Ordnance Survey 1st edition 1:2,500 map published in 1874 (Fig. 2) clearly shows a triangulation station at this point, with the parish boundary running slightly to the east. The present trial excavation was designed to determine its likely date and function. The cairn is covered by the same scheduling designation as the hillfort.

Fig. 2 Extract from Ordnance Survey 1st edition 25” map of 1874

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4 EVALUATION 4.1 The evaluation was undertaken in early May 2008 and consisted of a single trench measuring

approximately 6m by 1.5m, extending southwards from the centre of the mound (Figs 3-4). The modern walkers’ cairn on top of the mound was carefully removed prior to the commencement of the excavation. Numbers in brackets in the following text refer to individual contexts in the site archive, which has been deposited with the regional Historic Environment Record held by CPAT in Welshpool.

Fig. 3 Location of the cairn and evaluation trench, 1:500 (contours at 0.5m intervals)

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Plate 3 Initial view of the excavation from the south with the footpath to the east. 4.2 The removal of the modern walkers’ cairn revealed the remains of an earlier cairn (03)

containing a number of stones on which names and dates had been carved. The earliest inscription was dated 1898, with the initials MC, and the latest 1922. Of particular interest was the following undated inscription: ‘Carlyle D Chamberlain, Canadian Army, Prospect, Kentucky, USA’ (Plate 4). Information provided by the Canadian Great War Project has identified the soldier as Private Carlyle De Haven Chamberlain, born 9 March 1893 in Glengary, Ontario, enlisted 5 August 1918 in the Canadian Infantry. It is likely that he was stationed at Kinmel Park Camp, Bodelwyddan, and survived the war, probably having never seen active service.

4.3 A number of artefacts were recovered from the early walkers’ cairn, including bottle glass, .22

rifle cartridges and a penny of George V dated 1911, which appeared to have been deliberately placed beneath an inscribed stone marked ‘PP RF’.

Plate 4 Canadian Army inscription on a stone at the base of the walkers’ cairn

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4.4 Following the removal of the thin layer of turf and topsoil (01) and the earlier walkers’ cairn (03), a trampled peaty soil containing small shattered stone was revealed across the extent of the trench. The deposit varied from a dark soil at the top of the mound gradually changing to a greyish silty material elsewhere, and is likely to represent a mixture of redeposited and eroded mound material (see Plate 5). Underlying this material, and centred on the top of the mound along the northern edge of the trench, the outline of a large pit (04) was revealed, which extended beyond the limits of the excavation to the north and west. The pit, which was 0.38m deep, was filled by a soft dark brown peaty soil (05) with shattered stone (see Plate 6). A large quantity of 19th- and 20th-century bottle glass was recovered from the pit. It is possible that the pit was an antiquarian investigation of the cairn, or it may be associated with an Ordnance Survey triangulation station which is known to have occupied this site during the late 19th century.

Plate 4 The cairn summit after removing the turf showing deposit 07

4.5 Two features were identified in the base of pit 04, cut into the natural subsoil (11); an angular,

well-defined stakehole (13), probably of fairly modern date and the truncated remains of a small pit or posthole (12), 0.3m in diameter, which was undated.

4.6 Pit 04 had been cut through a series of deposits (06, 08 and 09) which appeared to be the in-situ

remains of the original cairn. A sondage, 0.8m wide, was excavated along the northern edge of the trench in order to evaluate the nature of these deposits (see Plate 7). The upper deposit (06) consisted of a dark brown silty clay up to 0.13m thick, containing small stones and pea-grit. No artefacts were recovered from the deposit, although a few fragments of 19th-century clay pipe had been trampled into the surface of the deposit at the centre of the mound. Underlying this layer was a thin lense of dark peat (08), only 20mm thick, which may represent the remains of a buried turf layer used in the construction of the cairn. This material was sampled and retained for possible further analysis. The lense sealed the primary construction material of the cairn (09), a firm deposit of reddish brown silty clay, 0.14m thick, containing small angular stones, which overlay the undisturbed natural subsoil, consisting of shattered stone mixed with an orangy brown silty clay (11).

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Plate 5 Pit 04 viewed from the west

4.7 A feature (15) was identified in the north-facing section of the sondage, located on the summit of the cairn (see Plate 6). This consisted of three apparently edge-set stones within a deposit of light grey silty clay with charcoal flecks (14). The terms of the scheduled monument consent prevented further investigation of this feature.

Plate 6 Possible feature 15 set into the natural subsoil at the base of the cairn, with stakehole 13

also visible

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4.8 On completion of the excavation the trench was carefully reinstated and the turf replaced. It is intended that the walkers’ cairn will be replaced in due course.

Plate 7 The completed excavation viewed from the south, showing sondage through cairn make-up

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5 CONCLUSIONS 5.1 The excavations revealed that the cairn is approximately 7.2m in diameter, and survives to a

height of around 0.3m above the surface of the natural subsoil. The cairn appears to have been constructed from two layers of stone and earth (06 and 09), in between which there is evidence for a possible turf layer (08). Unfortunately, no dating evidence was recovered for the construction of the cairn.

5.2 Two features were identified at the base of the cairn which may be contemporary with its

construction. One was a small pit or posthole (12), while the other consisted of what appeared to be edge-set stones which could have been set within a feature, although the area had been disturbed by a later pit (04). Given the position of the latter feature near the centre of the cairn it is tempting to suggest that they may be part of a cist-like structure, although this was not confirmed by the excavation.

5.3 A large pit (04) had been cut into the centre of the cairn, probably in the late 19th century, and

may be an antiquarian investigation of the cairn, or it could be associated with an Ordnance Survey triangulation station which is known to have occupied this site during the late 19th century.

5.4 The pit was sealed beneath the remains of an early walkers’ cairn (03) which included a number

of stones which had been inscribed with initials and dates, ranging between 1898 and 1922. One inscription is worthy of particular note as it was carved by a soldier in the Canadian Army. Private Carlyle De Haven Chamberlain enlisted in the Canadian Infantry in August 1918, and it is likely that he was stationed at Kinmel Park Camp, Bodelwyddan.

5.5 It may be significant that while the walkers’ cairn and the pit beneath it contained 19th- and

20th-century artefacts, the make-up of the cairn itself produced no finds of any date. This, and the features beneath the cairn could indicate that it is perhaps more likely to be a Bronze Age funerary monument than a more recent cairn.

6 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 6.1 The writers would like to thank the following people for their assistance during the project:

Richard Hankinson, CPAT; Samantha Williams, Helen Mrowiec and Fiona Gale, Denbighshire County Council; and the Canadian Great War Project.

7 REFERENCES Published Sources Davies, E, 1949, The Prehistoric and Roman Remains of Flintshire. Cardiff. Lewis, S, 1833. A Topographical Dictionary of Wales 2 Vols. London: S. Lewis and Co. RCAHMW, 1912. An Inventory of the Ancient Monuments in Wales and Monmouthshire: II -

County of Flint. London: HMSO.

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Unpublished sources Jones, N W, 2004a. Penycloddiau Hillfort, Flintshire: archaeological survey. CPAT Report

No. 631. Jones, N W, 2004b. Heather and Hillforts: Archaeological Condition Survey. CPAT Report

No. 658. Jones, N, 2006. Penycloddiau Hillfort, Flintshire: Topographical Survey. CPAT Report No.

820. Cartographic sources Ordnance Survey 1st edition 1:2,500, Denbighshire 8.15, published 1874. 1983 Soil Survey of England and Wales map (Sheet 2 - Wales) and Legend (1:250,000 scale) 1994 British Geological Survey map of Wales (Solid edition at 1:250,000 scale)

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APPENDIX 1

PROJECT ARCHIVE Site archive 2 A2 site plans 1 A4 site plan 84 digital images, CPAT film no. 2563 15 context record forms photographic catalogue context register drawings register 2 levels record forms Contexts Register

Context Type Comment 1 Deposit Topsoil (turf and peaty soil) 2 Structure Modern walkers’ cairn 3 Structure Base of early walkers’ cairn 4 Pit Pit cut into centre of cairn 5 Fill Fill of pit 04, dark brown peaty soil and stone 6 Deposit Trampled stoney dark/greyish brown layer, insitu mound material 7 Deposit Peaty silty soil and shattered stone, eroded/redeposited mound

material 8 Deposit Dark brown turf/soil layer within cairn 9 Deposit Yellowy-orange stone chips mixed with reddish brown silty clay

10 Deposit Dark brown peaty silt below topsoil, outer perimeter of mound 11 Layer Natural subsoil, shattered stone and orange/brown silty clay 12 Posthole (?) Possible posthole or deposition pit 13 Stakehole Angular stakehole at base of pit 04, probably of 19th-century origin 14 Deposit Light grey silty clay associated with feature 15 15 Structure (?) Possible post-hole or cist, truncated by pit 04

Drawings Register

No Scale Contexts Sheet No. Comment 1 1:20 04,06,12 01 Plan, post excavation plan of pit [04] 2 1:20 04-15 02 Plan, post excavation plan of Trench

illustrating sondage 3 1:20 01-11 03 Section and profile through mound/cairn, west

facing. Finds Register

Context Type Number Comment 03 Bottle glass 13 Late 19th to early 20th century 03 Coin 1 George V penny dated 1911 03 Iron bolt 1 Unknown origin, post-medieval 03 Stone 5 Inscribed stones, 1898 - 1922 05 Bottle glass 27 Late 19th – early 20th century 06 Clay pipe 2 19th century (?)

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Samples catalogue

Context Material Number of bags Comment 08 Soil 3 Peat/turf layer

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Penycloddiau Cairn, Flintshire - Clwyd-Powys ... · CPAT Report No. 932 Penycloddiau Cairn, Flintshire ... Within the interior the topography is undulating, ... Canadian Army, Prospect,