Priory Wood 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 an earthwork enclosure. The date or precise nature of the enclosure is unknown, but it is likely to be later prehistoric. The camp is situated on the top of a hill overlooking the Usk valley to the north and the coastal plain to the south. It is under permanent pasture and lies in the middle of the Celtic Manor golf course. The enclosure consists of the very slight remains of a roughly square earthwork with a smaller one inside it. The outer earthwork is defined on the NE side by faint bank and ditch which are clearest at the N end. The bank is 6m wide, 0.2m high on the inside, 0.6m high on the outside, and the outer ditch 2m wide and 0.2m deep. There is a faint bank, roughly 3m wide outside the ditch. At the S end the bank makes a right angle bend to the SW and continues at 0.6m in height. Outside it is a berm 6m - 7m wide, with a drop of 0.3m below it. The bank then turns another right angle towards the NW. Along the SW side only the bank survives. Towards the S end, inside the bank, is a depression 8 - 10m in diameter and 0.8m deep. Towards the NW end of, and inside, the outer earthwork are the faint remains of an inner roughly square earthwork. On the SE side is a faint scarp 0.6m high, and on the NW side there is a clear corner.

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.