Lluest Nantycreuau Deserted Rural Settlement

Cadw's description

Summary description and reason for designation

The following provides a general description of the Scheduled Monument.

The monument comprises the well preserved remains of a deserted rural settlement at Nantycreuau, consisting of a single dwelling house resting on an earthen platform near a stream and associated field or garden plots. The house, of drystone construction, measures c.7.5m x 4.8m and runs east-west across the local contour, with a drainage hood at its eastern, upslope, end and a single entrance on the south. About 4m to the south of the house is a garden plot measuring c.10m square. About 100m further to the south, linked to the house by a trackway which appears to pass above the upper edge of the field boundary, an associated field system contains two or possibly three plots at the foot of a slope which rises to the north-east. The largest field measures c.44m x 20m and shows traces of ridge-and-furrow cultivation. One or perhaps two smaller fields are appended to the west of this parcel, each c.10m x 15m in size. Nantycreuau is a small upland farmstead which could have enjoyed a long period of occupation, potentially beginning in the medieval period. Documents record occupation of the site in 1601 but by the mid 18th century it had been abandoned. The remains survive largely intact and undisturbed.

The monument is of national importance for its potential to enhance our knowledge of medieval settlement. The monument forms an important element within the wider medieval context and the scheduled area may be expected to contain a wide range of archaeological information, including structural and environmental remains, chronological detail and evidence in regard to construction techniques and agricultural methods. Rectangular huts may be part of a larger cluster of settlements and their importance can be further enhanced by their group value.

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