A project has been under way for the last two years in the Anglesey Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty supported by Cadw with accompanying educational supported by funding from the Anglesey AONB Sustainability Fund. It has been investigating a number of new archaeological sites discovered through aerial photographic survey by the RCAHMW and by Pixaerial. In 2009 a program of geophysical surveys of a selection of sites was carried out. In May 2010 one of the sites was investigated by trial excavation to characterise the remains, provide dating and interpretative evidence and to assess their survival and potential.
The area chosen for the field work was a sub-circular hill-top enclosure at Carrog, Llanbadrig, the survey of which showed a number of internal features and interpreted on typological grounds as a possible a Late Bronze Age or Early Iron Age defended site (see fig.). Thanks go to the farmer Jac Jones and to the landowner Robin Groves-White for allowing the excavation to be carried out and to the local people who helped on the excavation and gave encouragement.
The excavation at Carrog showed a large enclosure ditch, 4m wide and over 2m deep, of surprising size considering that the whole enclosure is only 50m diameter (see fig.). Within the enclosure were a number of small post-holes, some forming an arc that may be the outer wall of a single large central roundhouse. Unfortunately there were no associated datable artefacts but beneath the area of the former defensive bank and some way beyond it were found a number of hearth pits, some containing worked flint and chert and distinctive pottery showing occupation of the hill-top during the Early Neolithic period.
After the enclosure ditch had been largely silted up it had been backfilled and a small rectangular building had been built in it associated with part of a flat rotary quern and a stone loom-weight, believed to be of Romano-British date. The defended enclosure therefore preceded this phase by a considerable period. Its date should be eventually determined by radiocarbon dating.
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Carrog enclosure ditch terminal after excavation
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Carrog geophysical survey, excavated area and features
Ardal o Harddwch Naturiol Eithriadol Ynys Môn – Prosiect Olion Cnydau
Mae prosiect wedi bod yn mynd rhagddo ers dwy flynedd yn Ardal o Harddwch Naturiol Eithriadol Ynys Môn, sy’n cael ei gefnogi gan Cadw, gydag adnoddau addysgol ategol a ddarperir gyda chyllid gan Gronfa Cynaliadwyedd Ardal o Harddwch Naturiol Eithriadol Ynys Môn. Mae’r prosiect wedi bod yn ymchwilio i amryw o safleoedd archeolegol newydd a ddarganfuwyd drwy arolwg ffotograffig o’r awyr a gynhaliwyd gan Gomisiwn Brenhinol Henebion Cymru a Pixaerial. Yn 2009, cynhaliwyd rhaglen o arolygon geoffisegol ar nifer o safleoedd. Ym mis Mai 2010, aethpwyd ati i ymchwilio i un o’r safleoedd drwy gloddiad prawf i ganfod nodweddion yr olion, i ddarparu tystiolaeth o’u dyddiad a thystiolaeth ddeongliadol, ac i asesu eu goroesiad a’u potensial.
Lloc pen bryn is-gylchog yng Ngharrog, Llanbadrig, oedd y llecyn a ddewiswyd ar gyfer y gwaith maes. Dangosodd yr arolwg o’r safle amryw o nodweddion mewnol, ac ar sail deipolegol, dehonglwyd mai safle amddiffynnol posibl o ddiwedd yr Oes Efydd neu ddechrau Oes yr Haearn ydoedd. Rhaid diolch i Jac Jones y ffermwr, a Robin Groves-White, perchennog y tir, am ganiatáu i’r gwaith cloddio fynd rhagddo, ac i’r bobl leol am eu help gyda’r gwaith cloddio ac am eu hanogaeth.
Yn sgil y gwaith cloddio yng Ngharrog, canfuwyd ffos o amgylch y safle a oedd yn 4m o led a dros 2m o ddyfnder. Synnwyd at ei maint wrth ystyried mai dim ond 50m yw diamedr y safle cyfan (gweler ffig.). O fewn y lloc roedd amryw o dyllau pyst bach, gyda rhai’n ffurfio bwa a allai fod yn wal allanol un tŷ crwn mawr canolog. Yn anffodus, nid oedd dim arteffactau cysylltiedig y gellid eu dyddio, ond o dan yr hen glawdd amddiffynnol ac ychydig y tu ôl iddo daethpwyd o hyd i sawl pydew, gyda rhai’n cynnwys cornfeini a fflintiau wedi’u naddu a chrochenwaith unigryw a oedd yn dangos bod y lloc yn cael ei ddefnyddio fel annedd yn ystod y cyfnod Neolithig Cynnar.
Ar ôl i’r ffos gael ei llenwi â llaid cafodd ei hôl-lenwi, ac adeiladwyd adeilad bychan hirsgwar ynddi ynghyd â rhan o freuan droi fflat a phwys gwŷdd carreg y credir eu bod yn dyddio nôl i’r cyfnod Brythonig-Prydeinig. Felly, cafodd y lloc ei adeiladu gryn dipyn cyn y cyfnod hwn. Ymhen amser, dylai bod modd dyddio’r lloc drwy ddefnyddio system ddyddio radiocarbon.
Newyddion Ymddiriedolaeth Archaeolegol Gwynedd Gwynedd Archaeological Trust News 