Pen y Castell

Cadw's description

Summary description and reason for designation

The following provides a general description of the scheduled 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). Hillforts are usually located on hilltops and surrounded by a single or multiple earthworks of massive proportions. Hillforts must have formed symbols of power within the landscape, while their function may have had as much to do with ostentation and display as defence. This hillfort is defined by defences still clearly visible on west and north-sides. These consist of 2 concentric ramparts, partly ploughed out, and surviving as scarps, standing to a height of c2m. An entrance is visible in the SW. On the south side a bank survives as a low grassy mound, followed for most of its length by a hedge and fence, with some patches of erosion in places. A slight scarped earthwork is also visible, running through pasture, on the east side. The interior of the enclosure is under pasture and is divided by a hedge and bank running from W to SE.

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.