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by Heritage Action
There’s been a fuss over who should get payouts from the “Mynydd Y Betws fund” – that’s money to compensate communities adversely affected by the wind farm. All sorts of accusations of political bias have been flying around but those arguments miss the far more profound point that ought to be causing universal concern: the Council’s officers have pointed out that “the developer decided what communities should be included, not the council”.
So imagine. A thug owns a vicious dog with rabies that he willingly allows to bite ten people …..
But it’s not the law or lawyers or officials or an independent tribunal that gets to decide which of them (if any) gets compensated and to what extent (if any). It’s the thug!
by Sandy Gerrard
On a pleasant day Bodmin Moor is clearly visible from Dartmoor. Yet it was not until the 1970’s that Martin Fletcher of the Royal Commission identified the first stone row in the area. Since that time others have been discovered and recorded. It’s funny how the discovery of one site rapidly led to the identification of others. Plans of seven rows appear in “Bodmin Moor – An archaeological survey Volume 1: The human landscape to c 1800” by Nicholas Johnson and Peter Rose published in 1994. This publication makes a number of interesting comparative points between the Dartmoor and Bodmin Moor rows and would seem fairly helpful in any consideration of that “line of stones” at Mynydd y Betws.
The Bodmin Moor volume notes (green text below):
The Bodmin Moor rows, like the Dartmoor examples, are orientated in the north-east to south-west quadrants
[Mynydd Y Betws is orientated north-east to south-west]
and exhibit certain noteworthy characteristics:
a If they are on a slope, however slight, the lower end is the southerly end.
[The lower end is the southerly end at Mynydd y Betws]
b Six of the seven rows have taller stones, transverse stones, or other structures at the southern terminal.
[The largest stone at Mynydd y Betws is at the southern terminal]
c There are two distinct types of row: (1) those with small stones and small gaps between the stones and (2) those with larger stones and larger gaps between the stones.
[Mynydd y Betws has small stones and small gaps]
Four out of four is not bad. So the Mynydd y Betws stone alignment shares the broad characteristics of the Dartmoor and Bodmin Moor stone rows as identified by the Royal Commission, English Heritage and Cornwall Archaeological Unit. Any claims for a different interpretation will obviously need to explain why these characteristics are not pertinent and furthermore provide equally persuasive parallels for any alternative explanations. Simply stating that there is no dating evidence, will not suffice. Most Dartmoor rows and all of the Bodmin Moor rows would also fall at this hurdle.
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Oh, did I mention the helicopter?
The final installment in Sue Brooke’s story of her experiences with Time Team at Caerau Hillfort in Wales. New readers should start at Part 1 or see here for all previous installments and get right up to date.
Lots of emails started flying about that the Time Team programme would start its final run in January 2013. It seemed that the Caerau episode was one of the last series that would be filmed. Lots of excitement among everyone involved and who couldn’t wait to see the programme. Oddly I felt a little bit apprehensive. I wasn’t sure how the area and community would be shown or perceived, whether all the filming with the youngsters would be included, what the overall outcome would be. Anyway on the day it turned out to be difficult as the programme was scheduled to go out whilst I was working. Sod’s Law. No problem really as it was easy to record it. The thing is I just couldn’t wait to see this recording and I wouldn’t be home until about 11.30pm. Luckily there was a telly where I was to be working for the first half hour of the show. We put it on and I watched anxiously. Up pops Tony Robinson and one of the first things he did was pronounce the name Caerau wrongly. I groaned. Then the texts started arriving on my phone!
Overall the programme was really well done. OK, some of the shots, particularly the one of the sign saying ‘no guns’ could have been placed into a better context but having said that, I liked what I saw. The young people were included really well throughout the programme. The episode agreed with my work more or less, in the interpretation of the site. The fact that there were no human remains or shiny swords found would, I hoped, show that this site was interesting only in a people and place historical context rather than from a night-hawk perspective.
One of the best features, for me, were the aerial shots taken from the helicopter. OK, it has to be said that a lot of the texts I got were from people saying they had just seen my house (!) but for me it helped set the site in a brilliantly wider community context within Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan. Thank the gods for the pause button on the remote control. Luckily they didn’t manage to pick out me waving madly from the garden fence but it was a real shame I couldn’t have gone up in it! I have some aerial images but due to copyright difficulties I can’t share them here. But there is a lovely aerial shot on the CAER Heritage website.
I had seen the important ‘finds’ as they had come out of the ground but was surprised that a lot of others weren’t included. Perhaps there is scope for another programme. Perhaps they simply wanted to focus on the Iron Age rather than how the site was used following that. I’ve ‘seen’ this programme about five times since it aired but I haven’t actually ‘watched’ it yet, if you know what I mean. I get so distracted with the various elements of it that I haven’t yet been able to grasp the whole story, as Time Team tells it. In case you’re wondering, I actually did appear, for about 30 seconds but it was the back of my head, luckily!
Some of the ‘finds’ just after discovery.
The upshot of all this has been that it has enabled the CAER Heritage Project to move on quickly and professionally. Olly has written a booklet to accompany both the project and the TT episode which was launched at The Senedd in Cardiff (the main public building for the National Assembly of Wales), with various political party members attending. The local press picked up the story again and the display of work undertaken by the local schools has been on the road, so to speak, visiting St. Fagans Museum of Welsh Life, The Senedd and the Cardiff Story Museum. More funding has been secured so much more work can be carried out. The importance of the site has been highlighted which, hopefully, will protect it further.
So from my very serious misgivings about the total madness of letting Time Team dig it up there has been lots of positives. The field itself recovered well from the trenches dug and the vehicles churning it up, and as promised by CADW they did not dig it all up. Overall those lovely lumps and bumps remain intact. So that’s another good thing! There has been increased interest locally and even from other people who lived here once and moved away. I’ve chatted to lots of interested and interesting people who all have had another story to add to my collection. I’ve run out of the launch booklets, such has been the interest. Primary schools have contacted me asking for talks and more information on linking in with the work the CAER Project is doing. One little girl’s mum rang me to say her daughter marched into school telling her teachers that I was her friend (her mum refused to allow her to say aunty!) and that I knew everything about the Celts and had even been on the telly. I’ll be visiting there shortly to talk to the kids about it all.
So, the final opinion of the Time Team professionals was that this area, with its commanding views and good strategic position was probably very important in the area that would become modern Cardiff. They actually named it Capital Hill. All really good telly stuff.
The view from the hillfort site across Cardiff.
The thing is, and this is really important to both me and my ever changing research, I don’t agree with that. But, that’s another story.
Very many thanks to Sue for putting this story together for us! We hope you’ve enjoyed reading it as much as we did. There’s a lot more information about Caerau and the surrounding district on Sue’s own blog.
Caerau Hillfort:
OS Reference ST13377498
CADW SAM Number GM 018
National Public Record Number 94517
For those who may wish to visit then please note that there are various access points. However, the safest access to the hillfort site is via Church Road, Caerau, Cardiff.
For sat nav purposes use the postcode CF5 5LQ
Vehicles may not access the lane without prior consent of the landowner. The lane access gate is kept locked. It is however possible to walk up the hill but access is very steep and may be quite risky when wet. Visitors are asked to take care when in the grounds of the church due to the age and nature of the cemetery in the churchyard of the remains of St. Marys Church. Always remember that the area is a Scheduled Ancient Monument so may not be interfered with in any way.
Another installment in Sue Brooke’s story of her experiences at Caerau Hillfort in Wales. New readers should start at Part 1 or see here for all previous installments and get right up to date.
It was a while before anything more was heard. Meetings were being held quietly at the school and things were being kept beautifully secret. I worried that these kids who had worked so hard up at the church site would just be pushed to one side when the ‘big-guns’ arrived. This was not the case as the programme incident room was to be based at the school, the helicopter would be taking off from there for the famous aerial views and the strategic meetings would be based there at lunch times.
Then the text came through to tell me the date and time that the whole thing would start. OK, here we go. It was April, it was cold and, guess what, it was wet! I arrived at the school the day before the filming was due to start for the briefing and to be issued with my access-all-areas blue TT wristband. Goodo – that’s me most definitely in. OK, yes, I admit I took some covert photos of the Time Team vehicles. Well, you do, don’t you? These are as much stars of the show as the famous names.
I know, but I couldn’t resist. And yes, I leant on the bonnet.
Now, remember that this is a hillfort. There is now a lane there that helps access when the gate is unlocked. However, in the rain it gets full of mud and becomes dangerous. It was the intention of those who built this to keep uninvited visitors out. Perhaps I had a lot more in common with my Caerau ancestors than anyone had previously considered! But here I am – waterproofs, boots and blue wristband. There is a security guard on the gate. I kind of saunter up, acting all cool with my arm extended to show my wristband when the security guard asks me to move to one side to allow a vehicle to pass. It was Tony Robinson.
I walked up the hill. It takes a good few minutes, depending on how fit you are. It’s steep and it bends. As I walked around the final corner towards the church there it was. A mess. A huge mess. The rain had continued overnight. The vehicles had accessed the field through the gate where the security men now stood. The access to this rarely opened gate was now one large churned up, heavy, thick, muddy puddle. I really could have wept.
There was a white marquee over near the old church. There were people all over the place. Geophysics people were wandering around, people with cameras were walking about and a small crowd had gathered. Then more vehicles started to arrive regularly, depositing even more people on to the site. It was hard to understand what on earth was going on. My first words were along the lines of – ‘oh, what have you done to my field’. Perhaps they were a little more colourful than that. No, let’s be honest, a LOT more colourful, so probably best not repeated here.
There are TT rules that participants in the programme must agree to. You may only enter the site if you have the appropriate wristband. You must not wander around the field. You must not get in the way of filming. You must always keep an eye out for cameras, just in case you inadvertently get in the way. You must be prepared to wait. And wait. And then probably wait some more.
The really nice thing, for me, is that CADW have rules too. One of them is seemingly ‘though shalt not churn up Sue’s field.’ Two lady CADW Inspectors appeared – in hi-vis jackets and welly’s, wearing beautifully official ID badges. They made them sort it all out. They kept the closest eye on what was going on. They had to be consulted at all stages. I loved these two – they were absolutely bloody marvellous!
The whole thing was the oddest thing to be a part of. Being a long term fan of the programmes meant I had invited these people into my living room and listened to what they had to say on most Sundays. I’d watched them and re-watched them. I’d met one of them and I’d read most of the books they had written. Yes, yes, I even have the Mick Aston look-alike scarf. It was therefore quite a shock to see Paul Blinkhorn drive his BMW bike up the hill (very carefully and only once, I have to say). He wandered over to the gate and was immediately stopped by security officers who had no idea who he was. What? It was actually far more entertaining to stay near the gate than it was to be ducking out of camera line on the field itself. And, I have to say these security guys were very kind to the two ladies (I was one) who they nicknamed the Ninja Nanna’s. It’s a long story so don’t ask.
Now, if you were on the field you may have a microphone thrust in front of your face. On this was attached a small screen. If you were really alert you realised that this was actually filming you. Oh, oh! Come on now, you probably all have HD large screen tellies. Can you actually say, hand on heart that you would want your image appearing in this way, particularly us ladies – without the benefit of hair, make-up and costume stylists? Of course not – well not unless you are a glamorous BGT finalist. I’m not. I kept my hood up and my head down.
Matt Williams, hard at it!
As the days went on it kind of became excitable celebrity spotting. Well, for me anyway. The young people from the local schools were brought up to the hill. Activities were being run via the CAER Heritage Project and, I have to say, these kids behaved impeccably. They were patient, they were polite and they were very well behaved, as were, Francis Pryor, John Gater, Paul Blinkhorn and the lovely Matt Williams. I investigated a shovel throwing earth out of a ditch to find Matt on the end of it. That lovely bloke talked to me for an hour about the area and listened to my ramblings.
Me and Matt
But of course, I knew that Phil Harding was in my field somewhere. My Time Team hero.
Phil Harding reminds me of someone who I would describe as a man of the soil. He knows how to dig, he does the digging himself and he generally knows what he’s on about. He has learnt this by getting his boots dirty – no short cuts – just gets in the dirt and works away. A bit like I myself had to learn in understanding how to interpret the site really. Then word was coming through that Phil had found evidence of houses. Well, of course he has! Oddly enough this was just over my garden fence. I got very excited at this but didn’t want to pop up on camera or worse, get in his way.
The security guy on the gate said I was to go with him. So I did. As I approached I could see the hat, the jacket, the hair and, of course, the legendary tool box. There was Phil, in a trench with what looked to me like post holes. I stood there nodding and mute. I had so many questions to ask, so much input to give on MY field and MY thoughts on how life developed here. I could not think of one single intelligent comment to make. Not a single word. Oh dear.
But he had found evidence of roundhouses. I was right. People had lived up on that hill behind my garden fence, at least during the Iron Age, probably before.
Thank you Phil, you just confirmed what I knew already.
Of course, even TT heroes have to eat. So off we went to the school for lunch. Teresa Condick had arranged for food for our group to be brought in each day. We sat there eating whilst all around us, in my old school gym, were all the people I recognised from TT. It was completely bizarre. They talked about grown up things such as geophysics, glaciers, finds, post holes and round houses. I could not believe it. I went to make some tea and was stood alongside telly people, such as Tim Taylor, in his soaking wet, muddy socks. The school had insisted that these muddy boots had been left outside. Good for the school – rules is rules!
Of course, I have a life. I have to work. So off the hill I came and, after a quick change into my uniform off to work I went. During the course of my work I met Katharine. I told her about the hill and the TT filming such was my excitement. I issued her with a very stern ‘I shall HAVE to kill you if you tell’ threat. Then she said ’oh, I’ll just have a look at my maps’. Katharine Harry loves cartography. She understands topography. I told her about the area and she went away and she came back with historic maps I had not previously seen. She sat with me and she explained. She gave me copies. She changed the focus of my work. Katharine – you are a real star, thank you.
They came for three days. They dug holes, they made a real mess and then they went away. Oh, did I mention the helicopter?
To be concluded…
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by Sandy Gerrard
In March last year 18 questions relating to the archaeological situation on Mynydd y Betws were asked. During May the answers provided by Cadw were published here. I also asked my local Assembly member (Mr Rhodri Glyn Thomas) to ask the Dyfed Archaeological Trust (DAT) the same questions and he kindly did this on my behalf. Having had no response in October I asked Carmarthenshire County Council for a copy of the DAT response and this was passed to both Mr Thomas and myself shortly afterwards. A commentary on the DAT response was then produced and sent to Carmarthenshire County Council. This series of articles present DAT’s responses in black and my own comments upon them in green. See part 1 of the series here.
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16. Why has a fence post been inserted into the edge of a mound not recorded by the evaluation report at SN 6894910712?
The two evaluation trenches within the vicinity of Turbine 15 were excavated within the proposed access road corridor and the turbine base. No evidence of a mound, nor other archaeological features, excepting the non-scheduled cairn centred on SN 68819 10653, were identified during the preceding walk-over survey in this location.
This response does not remotely deal with the question unless of course it is saying that because the feature was not identified during the walk-over survey it therefore does not exist. There is a mound at this location and a fence post has been inserted into its edge. At the very least one might have assumed that DAT might have checked to see whether it was there and put in a place a strategy to ensure that it was not damaged any further when the post is removed in the near future.
Mound “overlooked” by the planning process
17. Why have the developers been permitted to dig a new drain to carry water from the new road across the stone row?
This drain was part of the permitted development and did not adversely affect the stone alignment.
Allowing copious amounts of water to cascade across the stone alignment has only not adversely affected it because the developers kindly agreed to move the drain when I pointed out the situation to them. Why did DAT not raise this concern?
18. Why have the developers’ vehicles been allowed to damage substantial areas beyond the permitted development area?
This Trust has no knowledge of substantial damage done to areas outside the permitted development. Dr Gerrard is advised to provide better information and address this particular matter directly to the planning authority.
This answer suggests that DAT are not closely “monitoring” the work for the County Council, otherwise they would for example be aware that a length of historic bank and ditch has been destroyed by vehicular movements associated with the construction of the nearby new road. Why is the DAT suggesting that I contact the County Council about an archaeological matter when they are aware that County Council have already asked that I address this question to them?
We trust that these responses are helpful. In the meantime, if we can assist you further with information or clarification, please do not hesitate to contact me or our Senior Planning Archaeologist.
Finally
“The extensive survey has, by giving equal weight to remains of all periods, highlighted the significance of the later sites in addition to the already well-documented earlier sites. It has also highlighted the potential for improving our understanding of upland settlement. These issues must be incorporated into the interpretation and management of the Blaenafon landscape to ensure that they receive adequate protection.” – ‘The Archaeology of the Welsh Uplands’ by RCAHMW , Eds. David Browne & Stephen Hughes, 2003, pp. 76
Why has this sensible approach been totally disregarded by the DAT who instead seem to have arbitrarily chosen which heritage assets were worth recording and those which deserved not a second look. The result is a report that is entirely biased and therefore does no justice to the multi-period archaeological landscape which has been damaged with little consideration being given to elements which contribute to making this place special. The Amman Valley owes much of its character to the coal industry and to completely ignore this in the work carried out on Mynydd y Betws is a travesty.
Dr Sandy Gerrard
11/10/12
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Here’s the latest installment of Heritage Action member Sue Brooke’s story concerning Caerau Hillfort in Wales. New readers should start at Part 1 or see here for all previous installments and get right up to date.
To say I was not a happy bunny was probably an understatement. I know I had formed the most ridiculous attachment to the area and had kind of allowed it to become emotionally mine, and it could even be said I was guarding it jealously. But that’s not the point.
The CAER Heritage Project had allowed for work to be done locally that I could never have achieved. My local history website couldn’t compare with the all singing, all dancing one that Cardiff University was able to build professionally and maintain properly and regularly. I knew this.
But do you know what; Time Team is just three days. They come in, they make a few ditches, smile at the cameras, drink some local beer and then put it all together for one programme. Then it’s gone. Done. Over with. This area was important and very few people knew about it. It was, for me personally in my work, as much about the ‘people’ as it was about the ‘place’. I didn’t want it to have been laying there for all these hundreds of years just to be flashed up on the telly for an hour and then left at the mercy of whoever walked through the field gates next.
Then we met again. People were going on about how good it would be for the community. How good it would be to show the area in such a positive light. How brilliant it would be in taking the CAER Heritage Project further – gaining more funding, doing more good things, teaching more people more skills. The work being done could be linked in to other areas locally with heritage trails, the local kids could have the work included in their curriculum and gain so much from it. Worse, everyone but me was very excited about it.
I asked questions about what would happen up at the site. Some references were made in relation to Alan Melton, leader of Fenland District Council, and his comments about ‘bunny huggers’. I liked that – I own five real live bunnies – but I wasn’t standing in the way of development, I was questioning the need to dig up a scheduled ancient monument for a TV show. When I asked about finding human remains it was pointed out to me that there had been a group of people campaigning for the return of human remains at various sites. I liked that too – I have been a follower of Arthur at Stonehenge myself for some time and I actually agreed with the principal that these people should have been allowed to lie in their final resting place and most definitely not end up as a museum exhibit – such as The Red Lady of Paviland exhibited in the National Museum of Wales. What about the vulnerability of the site? How could that all be kept secure, especially whilst the digging was taking place? What would happen to any finds? More questions, some answers.
I didn’t give in. Contrary to some comments made, I didn’t sell out. I just had no real option but to kind of agree to it going ahead – it would have anyway, the landowner was the one who had the final say, obviously. But I did have the option of making sure I was there.
So amidst all the excitement of being on the telly there was one party pooper. Me. Having said all that, there was still that nice man Jon from CADW who didn’t appear overly excited at all. Well, if he was he managed to keep a lid on it. So, once all the interim arrangements were made and everyone was sworn to secrecy the meeting ended.
On my way out I spoke quietly with Jon from CADW and said something like ‘you won’t let them dig it all up will you’. A one word answer, spoken directly into my eyes was good enough for me. ‘No’.
So, it seems, Time Team are coming….
As ever, the story continues next time, stay tuned folks!…
by Sandy Gerrard
In March last year 18 questions relating to the archaeological situation on Mynydd y Betws were asked. During May the answers provided by Cadw were published here. I also asked my local Assembly member (Mr Rhodri Glyn Thomas) to ask the Dyfed Archaeological Trust (DAT) the same questions and he kindly did this on my behalf. Having had no response in October I asked Carmarthenshire County Council for a copy of the DAT response and this was passed to both Mr Thomas and myself shortly afterwards. A commentary on the DAT response was then produced and sent to Carmarthenshire County Council. This series of articles present DAT’s responses in black and my own comments upon them in green. See part 1 of the series here.
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13. Why has machinery damaged a small part of the central line of mining pits?
We’re uncertain what Dr Gerrard is referring to.
Photographs of this damage have been published in the “Heritage Journal”. The contractors erecting the fence have driven over the historic coal mining earthworks causing some damage. The damage is not considerable, but could have been avoided entirely if the works had been carried out under archaeological supervision. The area damaged lies beyond development area.
The image shows the fence dug into the edge of the mining pits. In the foreground the earthworks have been damaged despite their position beyond the permitted development area.
14. Why was no mitigation work carried out on the central line of mining pits affected by the new road.
See 10 above
Since no excavation work was carried out the opportunity to enhance our understanding of this important resource was wasted. DAT appear to have assumed that this outcrop coal working was modern and therefore not worth investigating. What evidence does DAT have to substantiate this position? Can DAT be sure that these earthworks are not medieval or early post-medieval in origin? The historic character of this area owes a considerable debt to the coal industry. Why did DAT consider it appropriate to ignore such an important constituent of the Mynydd y Betws palimpsest? By choosing to deliberately evaluate only some of the archaeology it was inevitable that the resulting report would be biased and totally unreflective of the true heritage character of the area.
15. Why was no mitigation work carried out on the part of the northern line of mining pits affected by the new road?
See 10 above
See 14 above.
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We’re now past the half-way point in Heritage Action member Sue Brooke’s story concerning Caerau Hillfort in Wales. New readers should start at Part 1 or put Caerau in our search box to see previous installments and get up to date.
So, off to Cardiff University I go – clutching the latest draft of my very precious research. I was meeting Oliver Davies in the café of one of the many buildings on the campus in the centre of Cardiff. Olly talked in depth about a project that the University were looking at starting in the area. He knew of the hillfort area and thought it may be good to link in with the work we had been doing at the school and at the church. It was a case of you show me yours and I’ll show you mine.
This was a brilliant idea. The project was just what was needed to work with the young people in the area and to help with understanding exactly what we had tucked away here in Caerau. So, we met again to discuss this with the others involved and it was agreed to go ahead. The CAER (Caerau And Ely Rediscovering) Heritage Project was born. So, from the initial dining room table discussions this project was now becoming something properly formalised and, more importantly, funded. For more information on the project, see the project website.
We met regularly at Glyn Derw High School and various activities were now taking place with properly trained archaeologists and geophysicists all becoming involved. Artists worked with the young people from three local comprehensive schools up at the site and professionals worked with adults, increasing their skills. Something called Time banking was introduced which meant that locals who volunteered at events could collect Time Credits in exchange for their time. These Time Credits could actually be used as a kind of currency – being spent at various venues or used to pay for certain trips. The communities of Ely and Caerau were all involved and it was going really well.
I received telephone calls from the local press – I answered many questions, gave my opinion as ‘local historian’ and generally talked about the church area to anyone who may have been interested. I had even been photographed up at the site when special features had been run in our local paper on the area. One of the most unflattering photos of me, ever taken, was up at the church site one grey rainy morning. This actually caused much hilarity amongst friends and work colleagues, particularly as for some reason the media deemed it fit to mention my age. How rude!
Then at one meeting at the school there were quite a few new faces present. Not that unusual really as often people came along to meetings to discuss specific things. For example members from St. Fagans Museum of Welsh Life or someone from Glamorgan Records Office would often attend to update on a specific issue. However the words Time and Team were now being mentioned. Together and in one sentence. Apparently Time Team had been in touch with Cardiff University looking for a Welsh site to excavate. Someone thought the Caerau site may be suitable.
From previous discussion it’s probably been possible to pick up on the fact that this triangular shaped field over my garden fence was of real importance to me. It may have been full of poo and biting insects but for the last seven years or so it had been my field. No-one else had shown the slightest interest in it except me and Mr B and, occasionally a very reluctant Brooke the dog. I had enough research under my belt to know that this was where the early Caerau people had lived and possibly died. I had spent the last few years researching, photographing, walking and referencing an ever changing and ever expanding document to show my findings and explain how I had come to them. The place held its own secrets that I had yet only been able to guess at. It was a physical place that would be no more if it was dug up and carted off in boxes to some backroom in a museum.
I had absolutely no expectations that there would be any Staffordshire Hoard type discoveries to be made but I thought there may be some evidence of how the people lived up there and, even perhaps why they chose to live there. If it was defensive who were they defending themselves from? Did the Romans live there? Why was the church built at the top of such a steep and inaccessible area?
If word got out about this place would it be dug up at the dead of night and carried off in wheelbarrows, appearing on eBay sometime soon? Would the whole place end up as an area of square box houses with commanding views across Cardiff? What happened if they found human remains?
Of course, being Mrs Angry from Caerau means that at such awkward moments, everyone turns and looks at you. Especially Mr B, who had mentioned this before, only to receive a resounding NO in reply to his question, I think he did actually hold his breath.
Shall we just say that, at this point, I probably mentioned I had serious misgivings.
Follow the story in the next installment, coming soon…
by Sandy Gerard
In March last year 18 questions relating to the archaeological situation on Mynydd y Betws were asked. During May the answers provided by Cadw were published here. I also asked my local Assembly member (Mr Rhodri Glyn Thomas) to ask the Dyfed Archaeological Trust (DAT) the same questions and he kindly did this on my behalf. Having had no response in October I asked Carmarthenshire County Council for a copy of the DAT response and this was passed to both Mr Thomas and myself shortly afterwards. A commentary on the DAT response was then produced and sent to Carmarthenshire County Council. This series of articles present DAT’s responses in black and my own comments upon them in green. See part 1 of the series here.
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10. The explanation for Evaluation Trench 43 is not consistent with the evidence.
Evaluation trench 43 examined the mining pits. We understand that this had to be abandoned for health and safety reasons as asbestos cement was identified within the mining pits. Cotswold Archaeology had recorded much of the trench before the asbestos was revealed. However, it was clear that they are modern industrial mining features, parts of which could be removed by the development without significant loss to the historic environment of Mynydd y Betws
A truly remarkable answer. The excavation was limited to half-sectioning modern dumped material in these features and no attempt was made to reveal the primary deposits. It is therefore hardly surprising that the conclusion was wrong. A cursory glance at the Royal Commission volume for this area would have provided much more accurate results and an explanation for the depth of dumped material. This excavation was effectively abandoned even before the 1917 turf level was reached.
In the circumstances it is therefore difficult to accept that it is “clear that they are modern industrial mining features” as actually it is clear that they are not. Furthermore, the only matter that is clear is that it is now known that these remains were not recorded at all, with instead the work being devoted entirely to examining the rubbish that had been dumped into them. Given this, it necessarily follows that the Trust have no way of knowing whether a significant loss to the historic environment has occurred. At the very least an opportunity to understand the historic environment has been squandered. Are the Trust at least willing to admit to that? Why is the Trust satisfied that a heritage asset of some considerable age has been damaged without any proper recording?
11. The excavation strategy employed by Evaluation Trench 43 is very curious.
We do not agree with Dr Gerrard that the positioning of the trench in anyway affected the interpretation of these feature.
A trench that included at least one dump could have provided dating evidence and information on the character of the material being mined. The positioning of the trench meant that this potentially crucial information could not possibly be recovered. These features include three main elements – the pit, its fill and dump. The decision to look at only two is rather like excavating the ditch of a barrow but ignoring the mound itself. The decision to excavate these features in this manner may have contributed to the erroneous result.
12. The mining pits extend into the area of Turbine 16.
See 10 above
See 10 above.
The historic coal workings were largely ignored during the process. Why?
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We continue Heritage Action member Sue Brooke’s story concerning Caerau Hillfort in Wales. New readers should start at Part 1 or see the previous installments and get up to date.
Becoming drawn into research in any area leads you to forming a bit of an attachment to it. As you work your way through pages of books or you trawl the internet for information you begin to find other info, not particularly relevant to this bit of work but interesting nonetheless as it is related in some way. You begin to find out about the houses, where they were, who lived in them and who got taxed on them. Gaps in knowledge are filled.
When you are out and about you see things with new eyes. You also see things like damage, by kids or vandals or, sometimes by organisations who really should know better. So, Mrs Angry developed as a way of highlighting damage and trying to get something done about it. Some things have gone on for so long that it’s really difficult to do anything about it. Doesn’t mean you can’t try though.
The old church of St. Mary’s has been a target since the Reformation. If you recall I myself used to use the area to get out and about with my mates, resulting in being given that uncomfortable lift back in a nice Mini with a little blue light on top. More recently there has been graffiti, litter and associated damage. Locals get to know you and point out things you may have missed. A Facebook page was one of the best early ways of doing this but I was a little dismayed when some young people sent me photos they thought I’d like, taken at midnight on Halloween! So, damage to graves or the main fabric of the church remains gets reported to the responsible authority – quickly. After a while they kind of get used to you and you form a sort of alliance.
Damage to the wall of St. Mary’s Church
Working with the young people meant they began to know what the area was and what it meant and they began to take responsibility for it. Their parents and carers came along and they too got interested. The church was the focus of all this so meanwhile the field with its cow poo and very bitey flies remained largely ignored. The people who sat around my dining table during our planning meetings knew from my excitable ramblings that I believed the area, from my research, to be at least an Iron Age hillfort. The professionals I had worked with in CADW had been really helpful to me, not only in supporting my work but helping me answer such questions as was it OK to have a barbecue in the church grounds (always best to ask first!).
I had met the landowner – Ralph David – he was really supportive of what we were trying to do as obviously the vandalism affected him too. It was interesting for me to meet Ralph as, during my research I had found that his family had been the longest enduring family since written records began. Meeting Ralph was also a huge step forward as he gave his blessing to me and Mr B trampling around his land picking up random bits of china and pottery.
I had met with a CADW inspector Jon Berry, at the site one very rainy day and he walked with me – pointing out the bits I had missed. He was really interested and interesting and he was even kind enough to assist me back down the rain soaked muddy hill, thus saving me from completing the journey down on my bum, in an unladylike manner. The point being we started to know each other, who we were and what part we played.
The walk up to the hillfort
So, being Mrs Angry in a nice way meant I got known and, being angry in a nice way meant I got taken seriously.
The work I was doing began to become more formalised with the intention of running something I called the Caerau Local History Project. This was an idea I had in order to share the information I had found that wasn’t relevant to my on-going research but was valuable nonetheless. This written work was now at around draft nine, having taken four or five years to get to this point. So I bought a small web-site package and loaded up stuff like Hearth Tax lists, census information on families, photos, such as that of the quarryman’s wife below and generally more about how Caerau had, I believe, developed since early medieval times.
Wife of a Caerau quarryman. Image reproduced with kind permission of the family
So I began to promote this with little cards bearing the web address (which has now expired) and also contact details so that I could answer questions or, better, update with more information if people had it and were willing to share it. I started to get requests on information relating to individuals in the area. People started to tell me stories such as the Whitsun treats in the church grounds, weddings and related information like this. I loved it. This meant anything I found on the way to discovering more about the area in Iron Age times could also be used.
Then I got a rather odd email from someone who wanted to talk about the hillfort site. They were looking at some kind of academic project and had been given my details from CADW. It was a bit of a surprise that my best kept secret (I thought) was now to be the subject of some grown-up discussion.
OK – let’s meet.
The story will continue in the next installment, coming soon…
