Discovery & Learning 2011

Foreword by Andrew Marvell Chief Executive

Welcome to Discovery and Learning. This booklet briefly describes some of the projects that the Glamorgan-Gwent Archaeological Trust has carried out in the past year. We hope that this will open up a door both to our work and also to the diversity and richness of the historic environment in South Wales.

The preservation of the historic environment depends on a consensus of support and appreciation of value by all of us. Two of the initiatives, Archwilio and the Oystermouth Castle excavation, briefly described in these pages provide examples of how the Trust is doing its best to make information easily accessible to all and to actively engage communities in investigating and recording their local heritage. Other pages show how rich our shared heritage is and how there are still surprising discoveries to be made.

I hope that you can make your own discoveries too.

RE

TE GI S R

ED

N

I A

IO

OR

A N I SAT

G

Foreword

Andrew Marvell Chief Executive April 2011

Contents

Contents

Swansea Bay: Trackways to the past

Pages 1-4

Nidum: Recent excavations at Neath Roman Fort

Pages 5-8

Investigating Oystermouth Castle

Pages 9-12

Ironworks and their Landscapes

Pages 13-16

Archwilio: a tool to explore your past

Pages 17-20

Discovery and Learning 2011 The Glamorgan-Gwent Archaeological Trust Limited

Discovery and Learning 2011

Discovery and Learning 2011 The Glamorgan-Gwent Archaeological Trust Limited

Discovery and Learning 2011

Swansea Bay: Trackways to the past by Andrew Sherman

LEFT: An archaeologist cuts a lonely figure between high and low water on Swansea Bay. During the Bronze Age the area would have looked vastly different to what it does today.

In prehistory Swansea Bay would have looked significantly different from how it does today. The sea level was lower, so it was further out. We think that from time to time areas of dunes developed between the hinterland and the sea and prevented the local rivers draining freely into the sea. This created a large area of boggy marshland behind them, like today at Jersey Marine and Oxwich. Then conditions would change as deposits of clay or sand replaced the marsh. These changing environments survive in the present as layers of peat, some with fossilised trees, separated by layers of sand and clay. As the sea erodes these deposits, a series of peat shelves is created, which can be found on the beach at Oystermouth, Blackpill, Brynmill, Margam and Kenfig. When there was marshland, it would have been a good place for fishing and wildfowling, and a series of hoof prints preserved in the Kenfig peatshelf suggests that the area may have been used to graze cattle.

LEFT: Fossilised tree remains at Swansea Bay.

ABOVE: Cattle hoof print from Kenfig peat shelf.

1

Swansea Bay: Trackways to the past Scientific tests carried out on samples of peat taken from the Oystermouth peatshelf found seeds and pollen from a wide variety of plants including alder, oak, bulrush, common reed, water-pepper and watercress along with water flea egg pouches. This suggests that during marshy episodes the landscape was made up of areas of shallow water interspersed with islands of drier fen-land. To get across the wetter areas of ground the people using the marshland would have built wooden paths or trackways. In the last eighteen years four of these trackways have been found eroding out of the peat. Two were discovered in the Brynmill peat shelf and two in the Oystermouth peat shelf.

The first trackway to be recorded was excavated at Brynmill in 1993 and consisted of nearly 80 pieces of roundwood. These were small trunks or pieces of branch that had been stripped of side branches and cut into lengths, and they had been strewn onto the ground to create a drier surface to walk on. The largest piece of roundwood measured just over 1m (3 feet) in length and was 3.5cm (nearly 1½ inches) wide, and had been worked to a sharp point like a pencil, possibly to help peg the trackway down. A sample of the wood was radiocarbon dated to between 103 BC and AD 118 - the late Iron Age and early Roman occupation of Wales.

GRID

0

0.50

1.00metre

Key to conventions used in plan above and plan on page 3 Overlaying timbers Areas of underlaying timber

N

RIGHT: Once a trackway timber has been excavated and lifted, it has to be kept wet to prevent the wood from drying out, which would cause it to shrink and twist out of shape. Back in the laboratory the timber is carefully cleaned in order to identify any marks left by tools used in the original manufacture, these are recorded, drawn and photographed. The final stage of conservation involves substituting the water within the timber with PEG (Polyethylene Glycol), this stabilises the wood fibres and prevents decay, allowing the timber to be stored or exhibited safely.

(Timber shown is for illustration only)

Impression of timber removed by tide Area of submerged timber Timber upright (peg) Area of brushwood (up to10mm diam.)

ABOVE: Plan of trackway found at Brynmill in 1993.

2

0

10.00cm

Swansea Bay: Trackways to the past In 2009 a more carefully made trackway was recorded from the lower peat shelf at Brynmill. It took the form of a hurdle woven from narrow branches of oak and alder that had been trimmed by a metal axe to create straighter timbers. A simple oak peg had been driven through the hurdle panel into the underlying ground surface to hold the trackway securely in place. The entire structure was covered in a thin layer of brushwood to provide a level walking surface. A timber from the hurdle was dated to the early Bronze Age (2140 BC to 1930 BC), making this the oldest trackway identified from Swansea Bay.

RIGHT AND BELOW-top to bottom: Reconstruction drawing of a Bronze Age ‘Ewart’ type sword found on the Oystermouth peat shelf in 1941 (drawing not to scale). Cup-headed pin, more often found in Ireland, this large example is from the late Bronze Age (950BC750BC). Spear tip (late 1st millennia BC), an extremely rare ‘pegged type’ with decoration. End-winged axe (950BC-750BC).

(Photos at 50% actual size) Oak peg

GR

ID

0

1.00

2.00metres

N

ABOVE: Plan of the Brynmill trackway discovered in 2009.

A large quantity of prehistoric bronze and ironwork has also been recovered from the bay including spear tips, swords, axe heads, needles, bucket handles and cloak pins. These objects may have been lost or thrown away by the people that were using them. However, we know that prehistoric people placed great ritual significance on shallow pools of water, streams and rivers. It is therefore possible that this metalwork may have been deliberately placed as part of a religious ceremony.

3

Swansea Bay: Trackways to the past In early 2009 and early 2010 two lengths of trackways were recorded from the Oystermouth peatshelf, which may form part of the same structure. The trackway recorded in early 2009 ran east-west. It consisted of a series of roundwoods and other timbers which seem to have been made by splitting larger pieces of wood into quarters.

Lying on top of the roundwoods was a possible plank. It was not possible to record this trackway in more detail, as it was quickly re-covered by sand during winter storms. In early 2010 a second structure was exposed about 20m (65 feet) away, constructed from alder roundwoods, split in half and laid on the ground with the flat faces of the timbers uppermost. A timber from this second trackway was dated to the late Bronze Age (1040 BC to 910 BC), almost 1000 years later than the Bronze Age trackway recorded from the Brynmill peatshelf.

RIGHT: Metallic finds are not the only objects of interest to be recovered from the bay area, this magnificent antler belonged to a prehistoric deer.

0

10.00

20.00cm

ABOVE LEFT: Trackway found at Oystermouth in 2009.

BELOW LEFT: Trackway found at Oystermouth in 2010.

The three trackways recorded and dated from Swansea Bay in the last eighteen years suggest that the marshland environment that existed previously had been frequently and regularly used by prehistoric peoples. Hopefully we will discover more prehistoric structures in the bay in the near future.

4

The Roman auxiliary fort of Nidum was discovered in the late 1940s when part of its area was developed for housing. Since then, excavations and geophysical survey have contributed to our knowledge of its size and layout, and also of the civilian settlement that grew up outside its defences. The original fort on the site was built from earth and timber in the 1st century AD. In the early 2nd century it was replaced by a stone fort, whose defences were in a slightly different position. The stone fort was occupied sporadically at least into the 3rd century.

In 2010, continuing into 2011, the Trust carried out two excavations on that part of the fort which lies under the playing fields of Dwr-y-Felin Comprehensive Upper School. The first was for a new gas pipeline and the second, larger excavation was where a new building was being put up for the school.

Key to conventions Neath Technical College

Extent of scheduled area Excavated area (2010) Excavated and projected phases of the fort

Athletics Ground

2010/2011 Excavation

1st century Roman fort

Area shown enlarged below left Neath Sports Centre

Northeast Gate Tower Discovered 2010 2010 Excavation Internal area of Period I and II Phase forts

2nd century Roman fort m

pa

rt

Interval tower

Ra

Discovery and Learning 2011

Nidum: recent excavations at Neath Roman Fort by Martin Tuck

Ditches

Via Sagularis

2nd century road

Cobbled hardstanding

0

25.00

1st century Roman fort

Location of bread ovens and timber buildings

50.00metres

GRID N

Scheduled Ancient Monument (SAM) area limit

0

50

100metres

ABOVE: Plan of Neath Roman Fort showing areas excavated during 2010/2011.

5

Nidum: recent excavations at Neath Roman Fort When the southeast and southwest gates were excavated in the 1940s and 50s, the position of the other two gates was worked out by projecting the line of the roads that would have run through them to the other sides of the fort.

The first excavation found the internal corner of the southernmost gateway tower of the northeast gate, two massive stones and part of the adjoining wall. The original estimate had only been 2m out! Inside the gateway, it was found that the fort's internal road had undergone repair and resurfacing.

ABOVE: The surviving cornerstones of the northeast gate.

ABOVE: The 1950s excavations had established that each gateway had two carriageways, each about 3 metres wide, divided by a central wall (spina) that supported the roof.

ABOVE: A fragment of a Roman altar stone was used as part of the surface of the road leading from the northeast gate (scale 0.50 metre).

6

Nidum: recent excavations at Neath Roman Fort The results of the second excavation, where defensive ditches, the rampart, ovens and an internal roadway were found, gave us a whole new understanding of the early 1st century AD fort and the area outside its northwest gate. It also proved that the early fort was larger than its predecessor.

The defences of the timber fort consisted of a rampart and five parallel V-shaped ditches, with a combined width of about 12m, which would have proved a formidable obstacle. However, we cannot be certain that all of them were in use at the same time. They were interrupted by a causeway about 4m wide carrying the road to the northwest gate. Sometime later a wide cobble hardstanding was laid over the ends of the ditches but possibly only immediately outside of the gateway. This area perhaps provided a mustering area for troops.

Subsequently, a new road to the northwest gateway of the 2nd century stone fort was laid over the hardstanding, probably to ensure access to the civilian settlement that grew up around the fort.

LEFT: The five defensive ditches and the postholes for the interval tower.

RIGHT: The road out of the northwest gate.

7

Nidum: recent excavations at Neath Roman Fort The rampart, which ran alongside the edge of the innermost of the ditches, was about 6.7m wide. The front was supported on a stone foundation made from rubble and cobbles and the back was faced with turf. In between had been packed a mixture of soil dug from the ditches and clay. About half way between the gateway position and the corner of the fort was an interval tower. Its position was marked by the remains of large postholes in four corners, and by breaks in the stone foundation of the rampart. Two of the posts were set into the front edge of the rampart but, possibly uniquely in Britain, the other two were set into the ditch line on the outside of the rampart. This tower would have allowed soldiers to shoot at anyone attacking the gate. A strange recess built into the outside of the rampart and a pit near the gateway could be related to the soldiers extracting gravel from below the earlier ditches for the later fort.

BELOW: Samian dish with potter’s stamp shown enlarged (below right) and a rim of a mortarium with potter’s stamp and the edge of the pouring spout clearly shown. Both pieces of pottery were found within the oven area.

0

10.00cm

ABOVE AND BELOW LEFT: These communal ovens would have been used by the troops for baking bread.

We also discovered an internal road, the via sagularis, that ran round the inside of the perimeter in accordance with the normal layout of a Roman fort. Between it and the rampart were the remains of a cluster of seven ovens, with another lying about 12m away. They were represented by circular bases of flagstones or cobbling enclosed by walls in the local sandstone. However, one of these ovens was refurbished and enlarged to form a new rectangular oven.

The overlying soil in this area was blackened with charcoal, probably the remains of fuel raked out of the ovens.

8

Discovery and Learning 2011

Investigating Oystermouth Castle by Edith Evans and Andrew Sherman When the Normans invaded Gower in the 12th century, they built Oystermouth Castle as part of a network to control the harbours and establish their rule over the local Welsh. Although it fell into ruin after the Middle Ages, the remains are still impressive - thanks in part to George Grant Francis, antiquary and mayor, who restored them in the 19th century. But there is no once-forall restoration, and the castle still needs to be overhauled at intervals to keep it in good condition. In 2009 Swansea City Council obtained an HLF grant to carry out repairs and build a new visitor centre. Cadw was worried that, with the castle shut for over a year, it would drop out of people's consciousness, so they funded the Trust to lead a community excavation that would allow members of the public to try their hand at digging, and would also (we hoped) provide the answer to some intriguing questions.

ABOVE: The castle’s appearance today is the result of repairs in the 19th and 20th centuries.

Many visitors were shown around the site during both of the excavation periods.

ABOVE RIGHT AND BELOW RIGHT: Many of the finds came from rubble just under the topsoil, probably left there during the consolidation work carried out in the 19th and 20th centuries.

9

Investigating Oystermouth Castle Foremost of these was the gate-towers. For as long as people had been drawing and painting the castle they have shown the gate flanked not by projecting towers, but by concave recesses. These looked as though they had been designed as the inside walls of circular towers, complete with doorways to the interior of the castle and holes for the joists to support an upstairs floor - there is a tradition locally that the outsides of the towers were demolished by Cromwell. However, there was no sign of how any outer walls would have been attached. This has led some people to suggest that the towers were never built.

RIGHT: The Lord Mayor inspects the outside of the newly discovered base of the west tower, which is being drawn by a volunteer. The refaced standing walls now show no trace of how the tower would have been attached.

LEFT-clockwise from top right: A selection of finds discovered during the two excavation periods include:Belt buckle. Medieval iron arrowhead.

Green glazed medieval pottery sherd.

Possible ‘grape-shot’ made from iron.

Queen Victoria silver sixpence.

10

Investigating Oystermouth Castle In our trench to the west of the castle entrance we found that there was a solid mass of masonry with a rounded southwest corner, which we think is the bottom of the missing outer wall. When our expert looked at the mortar on the highest surviving part of this, he identified it as being of 18th century date. So we now think that the ruins were repaired some time in the 18th century, when the towers foundations were consolidated and the standing parts of their walls were refaced.

Key to conventions Limit of excavation

Truncated edge

Stone (overlaying)

Definite edge Indistinct edge

Stone (underlaying)

Concrete

Direction of slope (stone)

Lime mortar SITE

Vertical face

N

Slope

0

1.00

2.00metres

1519

Key to conventions Trench 5

Earthworks as planned by RCAHMW Trenches dug in 2010

Trench 4

Trenches dug in 2009 GRID

Scheduled area 0

25

N

50metres

Castle

Area shown enlarged at right

Trench 2 Trench 3

ABOVE AND LEFT: Plan (above) showing detail at northern end of Trench 1.

See plan (left) for location of detailed area.

Trench 1 (First season) Trench 1 (Second season)

11

Investigating Oystermouth Castle We were also looking for the ditch that would have encircled the castle. A geophysical survey commissioned in 2006 by the Friends of Oystermouth Castle appeared to show the ditch looping round the tower and extending southwards round the west side of The Knoll, where we thought there might be a barbican adding an extra element of defence to the gate. However, excavation showed that not all was as it seemed! We found no evidence for a barbican on The Knoll - the only recognisable medieval feature we found here was a mortar-mixing pit. As for the ditch, what showed up in the survey turned out to be a natural deposit of sand that had probably been dumped over the bedrock by a glacier during the Ice Age. Although there were deposits next to the tower foundation that looked like the fill of a medieval ditch, we were not able to follow them very far down, or to find the edge, because live cables for the floodlights lay over that part of the trench.

LEFT: The trenches in front of the castle during the 2009 season.

RIGHT: The glacial sand on top of The Knoll was a bit of a surprise.

On the north side we dug two trenches to find out what was going on round the back of the castle. The Royal Commission on Ancient and Historical Monuments in Wales thought that the earthworks here were the remains of the outer bailey, which would have housed things like stables, but another theory said that they were just post-medieval quarrying. As we found nothing medieval here at all, we think the quarry theory is probably correct.

Archaeologists from the Trust were also recording the underground remains found during the groundworks for the visitor improvements. Experts brought in by Cadw to examine the remains of plaster on the chapel walls were able to identify a painting of angels.

So, after two summers of work, we now know more than we did before about Oystermouth Castle. And lots of people had a great time finding it out!

RIGHT: Volunteers still smiling in spite of finding nothing in a trench behind the castle!

12

Discovery and Learning 2011

Ironworks and their Landscapes by Richard Roberts From 2004 to 2010 the Trust was funded by Cadw to examine industrial landscapes associated with the coke-fired ironworks of the Heads of the Valleys area. The project not only investigated thirty-five ironworks areas in their immediate settings, but also their wider landscapes with transport networks, water management systems, and extractive landscapes - the local sources of ironstone, limestone and coking coal - the raw materials of iron production. In the later stages of the project, the areas were selected for study in accordance with the requirements of the Heads of the Valleys Initiative.

Blaenavon Ystalyfera

Merthyr Tydfil

Swansea

Newport

Key to conventions Cardiff Study area (from Year 3) Core ironworks areas GRID

247metre contour

N

0

15.00

30.00km

Bristol Channel

The work was carried out on a landscape scale in order to increase our knowledge over a wide area as rapidly as possible. It was the first time in Wales that such a large-scale study had been undertaken for water management systems and extractive landscapes. We were able to assess the extent, quality and significance of visible remains, as well as archaeological potential, whilst seeing whether any parts required more protection. The project involved a considerable amount of fieldwork features and areas identified from desk-based searches, aerial photographs and historic mapping were visited and documented.

ABOVE: Plan showing the core ironworks areas and study areas.

ABOVE TOP LEFT: Abersychan Ironworks (1827-1883).

ABOVE TOP RIGHT: Furnace bank at Ebbw Vale (1790-1879); the standing remains are listed whilst the buried remains of the enginehouses, associated with Abraham Darby, are not.

ABOVE RIGHT: Recording remains at Craig Colliery, Hirwaun Common.

13

Ironworks and their Landscapes We identified that there were unprotected furnace remains at the ironworks of Abersychan, Ystalyfera, Dowlais and Plymouth, and good examples of ancillary features (e.g. casting houses and calcining kilns) at Gadlys, Ynyscedwyn, Abersychan, Banwen and elsewhere. However, it is likely that at many of the ironworks both furnaces and ancillary features survive in a buried state.

Visible remains of transport systems included tramroads, bridges, culverts, cuttings, embankments, stone pads and sleepers. The Abersychan Limestone Railway, the only example in south Wales constructed using wrought-iron fish-belly rails, the Disgwylfa Tramroad, and the Trevil Tramroad, all retained significant remains.

ABOVE LEFT: Restored calcining ovens at Gadlys, listed.

ABOVE RIGHT: Weighbridge house, Banwen. The intact mechanism surviving in situ makes this a rare survival.

LEFT: The Robertstown Tramroad Bridge, on Tappendens’ Tramroad, opened c. 1805 to bring limestone from Penderyn to the furnaces of Aberdare and Abernant.

ABOVE: The surviving 18th century causeway on the Trevil Tramroad, designed by the noted engineer Thomas Dadford and completed by 1796. The causeway was abandoned after the line was re-engineered and converted to standard gauge in 1919.

14

Ironworks and their Landscapes Numerous water management features related to ironstone extraction and processing (scouring and hushing) were identified and recorded, along with systems developed to supply power to the ironworks, eg the reservoirs at Waun-ypound and Rhyd-y-blew. Particularly significant survivals are the main feeder channels of the Hirwaun and Llwydcoed ironworks, dating to the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

LEFT: Reservoir at Waun-y-pound, part of the system developed from the early 19th century for the Sirhowy and Beaufort ironworks and later extended to include Ebbw Vale.

Ironstone quarries and patchworkings formed the most extensive extractive workings recorded, along with evidence of hushing and scouring, an early method of extraction using of a flow of water to expose and process minerals. Good examples of features associated with this process - leats, hushing channels, scoured quarry faces, and scouring reservoirs were identified. At Blaen Clydach, Brynmawr, remains associated with hushing and scouring include substantial hushing reservoir embankments, probably the largest and one of the best-preserved examples in southeast Wales. This area was leased to the Beaufort Ironworks when it was established in 1779, and from 1833 likely supplied both the Beaufort and the Nantyglo Ironworks.

ABOVE: Extractive landscape - ironstone quarries above Ebbw Vale.

RIGHT: Scouring reservoir, Blaen Clydach, surviving as a substantial earth and stone embankment, probably of 18th century date.

15

Ironworks and their Landscapes As well as the extensive hushing and scouring features, the many industrial features recorded included the remains of quarry workers' huts and temporary shelters with processing areas, internal tramroads and trackways, engine houses, brake engines, and winding drums.

LEFT: A quarry workers’ hut, Blaen Clydach, one of several dispersed amongst the quarries and tips.

BELOW: Plan of the Blaen Clydach extractive and water management landscape.

Key to conventions Water management features

Linear transport feature (tramroad or trackway)

Archaeological feature

Extraction area boundary

Levels Quarry workers huts Quarry workers hut Year 3-4 Study Area

Quarry workers huts

Scouring reservoir Quarry

Level Level

Area of intensive scouring

GRID N

0

0.50

1.00km

Other impressive workings are at Twyn Blaen-nant, leased by ironmasters Joseph and Crawshay Bailey of Nantyglo Ironworks, and the now fragmented remains on Hirwaun Common associated with the Hirwaun Ironworks, and the ironstone and coal workings on the slopes of Bwlch y Garn and Mynydd Carn-y-cefn, associated with the ironworks at Ebbw Vale.

The quarries at Penderyn-foel, which provided fluxing lime to the Hirwaun Ironworks from the 1750s, and supplied the limestone needs of the ironworks at Aberdare and Abernant until 1846, are some of earliest and best-preserved limestone quarries within the Heads of the Valleys area.

The ironworks, and their remaining features and landscapes are of considerable historic significance. The full results of the project can be accessed on the Trust's website (http://www.ggat.org.uk/cadw/swi/english/index.html).

16

ABOVE: Deep scours at Coedcaemawr retain lateral hushing channels and internal barriers used to direct the flow of water to parts of the quarry face. These features were in use before 1760.

Discovery and Learning 2011

Archwilio: a tool to explore your past by Charina Jones If you are interested in the history and archaeology of your local area, where you grew up or other place of interest in Wales, there is now an easy way to find out more online.

Summer 2010 saw the launch of Archwilio, a searchable website for the Historic Environment Records (HERs) of Wales.

This is a joint initiative by the four Welsh Archaeological Trusts to make archaeological information publicly accessible. If you're not familiar with the HERs, together they contain over 100,000 records of archaeological and historical sites across Wales maintained by the four Welsh Archaeological Trusts, and previously only available to view upon visit to each of the Trusts' offices. The records comprise two main types, Core records and Event records. Core records contain the basic information relating to sites, monuments or findspots, such as castles, burial sites, chapels or flint tools. Event records give information on archaeological investigations.

ABOVE: Archwilio home page map showing the GGAT area.

RIGHT: Alun Ffred Jones, Minister for Heritage, at the launch of Archwilio.

During his keynote speech at the 2010 Treftadaeth Conference for the historic environment in Wales, Mr Alun Ffred Jones AM, Minister for Heritage, observed that Archwilio will be a tremendous asset, not only for the people of Wales, but also for those further afield who have an interest in the rich archaeology and cultural heritage of our country.

www.archwilio.org.uk 17

Archwilio: a tool to explore your past Your query Archwilio translates as 'to explore' and the website allows you to do just that! It features an interactive map, familiar to most internet users, and keyword or list search options, so navigating your way through Wales' past has never been so easy. Map and text based searches can be combined to focus on your subject/area of interest. Full descriptions for each record are accessible along with details of other relevant sources to aid further research. No specific knowledge of the archaeology of Wales is required - just choose an area and find out what's there, or pick a period of interest, enter a keyword or record Primary Reference Number (PRN). Our handy Help pages will show you how to get the most out of your search options.

ABOVE: Results for map search showing road map of Cardiff City Centre with enlarged area shown to the right.

LEFT: Results for map search showing aerial image, including Caerleon Roman Ampitheatre middle, right.

www.archwilio.org.uk 18

Archwilio: a tool to explore your past

The HERs are continuously updated and the information on Archwilio is virtually live. There is only a 24hr time gap between updates and new records added to the Trusts' internal system before they appear on Archwilio. There may be something new every day, as there are always discoveries to be made. In addition to the online record, each Trust holds a substantial supporting paper reference collection. For details on how to find out more information about a record visit the Enquiries page.

Select column to sort records

LEFT: Results for text search on ‘church’ sorted by ‘Period’.

Your project Archwilio allows users to print search results: you can use this as a guide when visiting a site, or share it with someone else. Here are some ideas for creating your own project using Archwilio as the starting point: Plan a day out to visit sites of interest Get involved in a community heritage project Create your own heritage trail Research buildings of local interest

BELOW: Members of a community group using Archwilio to look for archaeological sites.

Remember to use the information responsibly:* if you want to visit a site you must ask the landowner's permission in advance (unless it is Open Access land), and investigating a site is more complicated than it looks. Get in touch with us for more advice or if you are interested in starting a community-led project.

Visit http://www.ggat.org.uk/arfordir/enter.html and http://ggathlf.wordpress.com/ to see how Archwilio has been used to help other people investigate their past. *All users must read and accept the Conditions of Use before using Archwilio.

www.archwilio.org.uk 19

Archwilio: a tool to explore your past Your contribution One unique aspect about Archwilio is the opportunity for you, as user, to comment on the website as well as on individual records.

User feedback is important for the future of Archwilio as a valuable tool for all interested parties as well as enhancement of the Historic Environment Record. Visit the Your Comments section to let us know what you think, to report a new site not yet recorded, or to provide further information about a record. Local knowledge can be an important factor in recording the past.

“I found the Archwilio interface very user-friendly and think the approach of a single portal to access all four HERs in Wales is brilliant. As a teacher I can see huge potential for use in school, allowing pupils to investigate the archaeology around them which isn't always an easy thing to do! I will certainly be promoting the use of Archwilio in the future!�

Lucy-Ann Pickering (Teacher)

Future developments A number of future developments are in the pipeline to boost the Archwilio website both in terms of content and user experience. These are just four of the proposed additions:

ABOVE RIGHT: Llantwit Fardre parish church, Church Village, RCT (PRN 00599m).

ABOVE TOP: Prehistoric cairn, Gelligaer Common (PRN 00502m).

ABOVE BOTTOM: Excavation at Merthyr Dyfan medieval deserted settlement, Barry (PRN 00722s).

Photographs and other images of sites Documents such as excavation reports An advanced search option for more detailed queries Glossary of archaeological technical terminology

www.archwilio.org.uk 20

Explore the past today!

Discovery and Learning 2011

Discovery and Learning 2011 The Glamorgan-Gwent Archaeological Trust Limited