Llyswen Camp

Cadw's description

Summary description and reason for designation

The following provides a general description of the Scheduled Ancient Monument.

The monument comprises the remains of a hillfort, which probably dates to the Iron Age period (c. 800 BC - AD 74, the Roman conquest of Wales). Llyswen Camp comprises a rough circuler hillfort located on an ESE facing slope above the Wye valley. It measures around 150m in diameter. The defences are most massive on the upper, W side where there are two steep-sided banks. The inner bank is 2-2.5m high on the inside and 1.5m high on the outside. Outside it is a deep, steep-sided ditch , 2m deep, Two deep gullies cut through the banks, which are probably the result of water scouring. On the N side the banks continue, with a small stream running in the ditch between them. The inner bank is 2-2.5m high on the outside, with a negligible interior height. The outer bank is 1.8m high on the outside and 1.5m high on the inside.The outer ditch is much shallower and peters out towards the E. The inner bank becomes a scarp towards the E end, and at the NE corner the outer banks lowers and stops. On the E side the defences continue as two scarps, the upper one 2-2.5m high and the lower one 1.6-2m high. On the S side the inner bank is 0.7-1.5m high on the inside, 2m high on the outside. The original entrance would have been on the E side.

The monument is of national importance for its potential to enhance our knowledge of later prehistoric defensive organisation and settlement. The site forms an important element within the wider later prehistoric context and within the surrounding landscape. The site is well preserved and retains considerable archaeological potential. There is a strong probability of the presence of evidence relating to chronology, building techniques and functional detail.

The scheduled area comprises the remains described and areas around them within which related evidence may be expected to survive.