Pen-y-Gaer Camp

Cadw's description

Summary description and reason for designation

The following provides a general description of the scheduled ancient monument.

Pen-y-Gaer Hillfort comprises the remains of a defended enclosure or hillfort. Such enclosures probably date to the Iron Age period (c. 800 BC - AD 74), although several are known to date from the Late Bronze Age with activity through to the early post-Roman period. It is located on a low hill in the southern Vale of Clwyd, on the western side of the River Clwyd. Pen-y-Gaer Camp is roughly oval in plan, measuring about 200m NE-SW by 150m. It appears to have a single bank, fossilised in the field boundaries encircling the summit.

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.