Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

WA1551 Berry Wood, Glamorgan (Berry Wood Enclosure)

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

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HER:  Glamorgan Gwent 00159w (None)

NMR:  SS 48 NE 6 (93098)

SM:  GM178

NGR:  SS47238847

X:  247230  Y:  188470  (OSGB36)

Summary

Roughly circular, multiple enclosure hillslope fort located just above a stream flowing to the sea at Oxwich Burrows. S and W surrounding slopes moderate to strong, N and E less. Formerly widely-spaced ramparts and 0.4ha internal area. Inner enclosure c. 33m in diameter and 0.1ha, formerly best on SW, but now all more or less ploughed out. Outer enclosure, c. 73m diameter, with bank, to c. 0.5m high, and counterscarp, to c. 0.2m high, just visible on SE near Berry Wood, with shallow outer ditch. Site already eroded in 1970 and rest of circuit now nearly gone. Defined as a ringwork by RCAHMW (Coflein). On 1st Ed. OS map (1879). Minimal investigations, undated.

Status

Citizen Science:  ✗

Reliability of Data:  Confirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Confirmed

Location

X:  -468209  Y:  6723516  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -4.205994718117147  Latitude:  51.57429508381791  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  Wales

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Swansea

Historic County:  Glamorgan

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Port Eynon

Monument Condition

Remains have been denuded by ploughing.

Condition:
Extant   ✓
Cropmark   ✗
Likely Destroyed   ✗

Land Use

Pasture and scrub.

Current Use:
Woodland   ✗
Commercial Forestry Plantation   ✗
Parkland   ✗
Pasture (Grazing)   ✓
Arable   ✗
Scrub/Bracken   ✓
Bare Outcrop   ✗
Heather/Moorland   ✗
Heath   ✗
Built-up   ✗
Coastal Grassland   ✗
Other   ✗

Landscape

Hillfort Type

Roughly circular multiple enclosure hillslope fort located just above a stream flowing to the sea at Oxwich Burrows. S and W surrounding slopes moderate to strong, N and E less.

Type:
Contour Fort   ✗
Partial Contour Fort   ✗
Promontory Fort   ✗
Hillslope Fort   ✓
Level Terrain Fort   ✗
Marsh Fort   ✗
Multiple Enclosure Fort   ✓

Topographic Position

Position:
Hilltop   ✗
Coastal Promontory   ✗
Inland Promontory   ✗
Valley Bottom   ✗
Knoll/Hillock/Outcrop   ✗
Ridge   ✗
Cliff/Plateau-edge/Scarp   ✗
Hillslope   ✓
Lowland   ✗
Spur   ✗

Dominant Topographic Feature:  Hillslope

Aspect:
North   ✗
Northeast   ✓
East   ✗
Southeast   ✗
South   ✗
Southwest   ✗
West   ✗
Northwest   ✗
Level   ✗

Altitude:  46.0m

Boundary

N/A


Dating Evidence

None

Reliability:  D - None

Principal Activity:
Pre 1200BC   ✗
1200BC - 800BC   ✗
800BC - 400BC   ✗
400BC - AD50   ✗
AD50 - AD400   ✗
AD400 - AD 800   ✗
Post AD800   ✗
Unknown   ✓

Other Activity:
Pre Hillfort:   None
Post Hillfort:   None

Evidence:No related records

Investigation History

On 1st Ed. OS map (1879). RCAHMW investigation 1967. GGAT Prehistoric defended enclosures in Glamorgan survey 2005.

Investigations:
Other (1967):   RCAHMW investigation.
1st Identified Map Depiction (1979):   OS map.
Other (2005):   GGAT Prehistoric defended enclosures in Glamorgan survey.

Interior Features

None

Water Source

Entrance to NE near a spring.

Source:
None   ✓
Spring   ✗
Stream   ✗
Pool   ✗
Flush   ✗
Well   ✗
Other   ✗

Surface

None

Interior Features (Surface):
No Known Features   ✓
Round Stone Structures   ✗
Rectangular Stone Structures   ✗
Curvilinear Platforms   ✗
Other Roundhouse Evidence   ✗
Pits   ✗
Quarry Hollows   ✗
Other   ✗

Excavation

None

Interior Features (Excavation):
No Known Excavation   ✓
Pits   ✗
Postholes   ✗
Roundhouses   ✗
Rectangular Structures   ✗
Roads/Tracks   ✗
Quarry Hollows   ✗
Other   ✗
Nothing Found   ✗

Geophysics

None

Interior Features (Geophysics):
No Known Geophysics   ✓
Pits   ✗
Roundhouses   ✗
Rectangular Structures   ✗
Roads/Tracks   ✗
Quarry Hollows   ✗
Other   ✗
Nothing Found   ✗

Finds

None

Interior (Finds):
No Known Finds   ✓
Pottery   ✗
Metal   ✗
Metalworking   ✗
Human Bones   ✗
Animal Bones   ✗
Lithics   ✗
Environmental   ✗
Other   ✗

Aerial

None

Interior Features (Aerial):
APs Not Checked   ✓
None   ✗
Roundhouses   ✗
Rectangular Structures   ✗
Pits   ✗
Postholes   ✗
Roads/Tracks   ✗
Other   ✗

Entrances

Entrance, c. 9m wide, to NE near a spring.

Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:  
1:   None

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   None

Guard Chambers:  ✗

Chevaux de Frise:  ✗

Entrances:
1. Simple Gap (North east):   None

Enclosing Works

Inner enclosure c. 33m in diameter, formerly best on SW, but now all more or ploughed out. Outer enclosure, c. 73m diameter, with bank, to c. 0.5m high, and counterscarp, to c. 0.2m high, just visible on SE near Berry Wood, with shallow outer ditch. Site already eroded in 1970 and rest of circuit now nearly gone. 0.4ha and 0.1ha.

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   0.1ha.
Area 2:   0.4ha.
Total:   0.4ha.

Total Footprint Area:  Noneha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   Areas of inner and outer enclosures.

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✓   Site nearly lost.

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   2
SE Quadrant:   2
SW Quadrant:   2
NW Quadrant:   2
Total:   2

Morphology

Current Morphology:
Partial Univallate   ✗
Univallate   ✗
Partial Bivallate   ✗
Bivallate   ✓
Partial Multivallate   ✗
Multivallate   ✗
Unknown   ✗

Detailed Morphology:
Partial Univallate   ✗
Univallate   ✗
Partial Bivallate   ✗
Bivallate   ✗
Partial Multivallate   ✗
Multivallate   ✗

Surface Evidence

Outer bank has counterscarp.

Enclosing Works (Surface):
None   ✗
Earthen Bank   ✓
Stone Wall   ✗
Rubble   ✗
Wall-walk   ✗
Evidence of Timber   ✗
Vitrification   ✗
Other Burning   ✗
Palisade   ✗
Counter Scarp Bank   ✓
Berm   ✗
Unfinished   ✗
Other   ✗

Excavated Evidence

None

Enclosing Works (Excavation):
None   ✗
Earthen Bank   ✗
Stone Wall   ✗
Murus Duplex   ✗
Timber-framed   ✗
Timber-laced   ✗
Vitrification   ✗
Other Burning   ✗
Palisade   ✗
Counter Scarp Bank   ✗
Berm   ✗
Unfinished   ✗
No Known Excavation   ✓
Other   ✗

Other

Gang Working:
✗   None

Ditches:
✓   None

Number of Ditches:  1

Annex:
✗   None

References

Gerrard, C., Wiggins, H., and Evans, E. 2006. Prehistoric defended enclosures in Glamorgan with recommendations for fieldwork: Year 3 Report, GGAT Report No 2006/089, Project No GGAT78, Swansea: GGAT.

RCAHMW 1976. An inventory of the ancient monuments in Glamorgan, 1.2, Pre-Norman, Parts I-III, 686, Cardiff: HMSO.

Savory, H.N. 1949. List of hill-forts in Wales, Bull Board Celtic Stud, 13, 159.



Terms of Use

This work is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 and should be cited as:

Lock, Gary and Ralston, Ian. 2024. Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland. Available at: https://hillforts.arch.ox.ac.uk


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