Cwmsymlog Lead Mine

Cadw's description

Summary description and reason for designation

The following provides a general description of the Scheduled Monument.

The monument consists of the site of one of the most important lead and silver mines in Wales, referred to by Lewis Morris in 1747 as ‘ the richest in lead and silver of any in His Majesty’s Dominions’. Well preserved features remain visible on site. The whole site is exceptionally well documented for most of its operational history from 1585, when the Mines Royal company began excavation here, until its final closure in 1901. Several leading figures in British metal mining were associated with the mine. It was probably first worked in prehistoric or Roman times, but most visible features date from the 16th to 19th centuries. These include a stone chimney of 1855 associated with the base of a beam engine house. Pryse’s shaft, adjacent, is exceptionally preserved, including a balance bob pit and tunnels for transmission rods. A partially filled stope is attributed to the works of Sir Thomas Bushell in the mid 17th century. At the eastern end is Skinner’s shaft, sunk c1850, which retains a waterwheel pit for pumping, a bob pit and a capstan circle.

The monument is of significance for its well preserved remains of a leading Welsh lead mine, for its complex history, and for its good documentation. It is of national importance for its potential to enhance our knowledge of mining practices. It retains significant archaeological potential, with a strong probability of the presence of associated archaeological features and deposits.

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