Possibly the most interesting thing to come out of the work in the Pensarn area is the discovery (during the search for a Neolithic Proto-Stonehenge) of a Roman villa site. This was discovered by geophysical surveys in a field in Meline parish in September 2016, and reported to a student conference in April 2017. The field is about 500m to the east of the Pensarn Lane where the 2016 dig took place.
It's great to see students working on a project like this, and reporting their work responsibly. I'm sure we all wish them well, and look forward to seeing what the 2017 dig has revealed. The name Parc y Gaer means "fort park" or "fort field" -- I'm intrigued to know whether that name is the traditional name used by the farmers of this land down through the years. Here is the abstract from the spring conference:
Intriguing..., what were you saying about finding something other than what you were looking for?
ReplyDeleteThere is a Parc y Gaer field name on the tithe map apportionment for Meline parish, if you look on the excellent Cynefin website. It is about 600m east of the field with this year's action. May not be related at all.
Dave
Thanks Dave I hadn't realised you could do a field name search on Cynefin. I tried and could not work out how to do it......
ReplyDeleteNo matter -- I imagine there must be many fields with that name. Maybe they have been digging over there? Will inform you as more info becomes available.....
Are there any pictures of the stone with the rock art do you know?
ReplyDeleteFascinating discovery...
Yes,indeed,the Roman Villa site is around 600m east-north-east of the Pensarn dig. Trial trenches showed remains of walls and characteristic roofing material. There may be further work next year if funding can be raised.
ReplyDelete