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HER:  Gwynedd 1314 (None)
NMR:  SH 44 NW 6 (93530)
SM:  CN052
NGR:  SH42904550
X:  242900  Y:  345500  (OSGB36)
Small stone-built contour hillfort situated high on isolated prominent spur of Yr Eifl on the Ll_n. Opposite to Carn Pentryrch (Atlas No. 1726). Surrounding slopes moderate to strong to N, steep to E and S, very steep to W. Numerous bare rock outcrops on summit and on steep N and E slopes. To E wet moorland. Internal area 0.6ha. Single drystone wall, up to 4.5 m thick, except on NW were rests on crags. No ditch visible. Ancient road leads towards the fort from the NE. The entrance on W is a passage 3.3m long and 2.1m wide. Circa dozen round hut platforms. A small trench cut 1939 (no details) revealed occupation earth and a small potsherd. Traces of surrounding field systems seemingly ploughed out. Rough upland grazing, moorland and bare rock. On 1st Ed. OS map (1889). Undated.
Citizen Science:  ✗
Reliability of Data:  Confirmed
Reliability of Interpretation:  Confirmed
X:  -483311  Y:  6979989  (EPSG: 3857)
Longitude:  -4.341655466225008  Latitude:  52.9837323741725  (EPSG:4326)
Country:  Wales
Current County or Unitary Authority:  Gwynedd
Historic County:  Caernarfonshire
Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Llanaelhaearn
Much spread walls.
| Extant   | ✓ |
| Cropmark   | ✗ |
| Likely Destroyed   | ✗ |
Rough upland grazing and moorland. Bare rock.
| Woodland   | ✗ |
| Commercial Forestry Plantation   | ✗ |
| Parkland   | ✗ |
| Pasture (Grazing)   | ✓ |
| Arable   | ✗ |
| Scrub/Bracken   | ✗ |
| Bare Outcrop   | ✗ |
| Heather/Moorland   | ✓ |
| Heath   | ✗ |
| Built-up   | ✗ |
| Coastal Grassland   | ✗ |
| Other   | ✗ |
Small stone-built contour hillfort situated high on isolated prominent spur of Yr Eifl on the Ll_n. Small stone-built contour hillfort situated high on isolated prominent spur of Yr Eifl on the Llyn. Opposite to Carn Pentryrch (Atlas No. 1726). Surrounding slopes moderate to strong to N, steep to E and S, very steep to W.
| Contour Fort   | ✓ |
| Partial Contour Fort   | ✗ |
| Promontory Fort   | ✗ |
| Hillslope Fort   | ✗ |
| Level Terrain Fort   | ✗ |
| Marsh Fort   | ✗ |
| Multiple Enclosure Fort   | ✗ |
| Hilltop   | ✗ |
| Coastal Promontory   | ✗ |
| Inland Promontory   | ✗ |
| Valley Bottom   | ✗ |
| Knoll/Hillock/Outcrop   | ✗ |
| Ridge   | ✗ |
| Cliff/Plateau-edge/Scarp   | ✗ |
| Hillslope   | ✗ |
| Lowland   | ✗ |
| Spur   | ✓ |
Dominant Topographic Feature:  Spur
| North   | ✗ |
| Northeast   | ✗ |
| East   | ✗ |
| Southeast   | ✗ |
| South   | ✗ |
| Southwest   | ✗ |
| West   | ✗ |
| Northwest   | ✗ |
| Level   | ✓ |
Altitude:  389.0m
N/A
None
Reliability:  D - None
| Pre 1200BC   | ✗ |
| 1200BC - 800BC   | ✗ |
| 800BC - 400BC   | ✗ |
| 400BC - AD50   | ✗ |
| AD50 - AD400   | ✗ |
| AD400 - AD 800   | ✗ |
| Post AD800   | ✗ |
| Unknown   | ✓ |
| Pre Hillfort:   | None |
| Post Hillfort:   | None |
On 1st Ed. OS map (1889). RCAHMW investigation 1956. Ordnance Survey observations 1963, 1972, 1976. GAT investigation 1972. Small trench cut 1939 (no details). GAT prehistoric defended enclosures survey 2005-2006.
| 1st Identified Map Depiction (1889):   | OS map. |
| Excavation (1939):   | No details. |
| Other (1956):   | RCAHMW investigation. |
| Other (1972):   | GAT investigation. |
| Other (2005):   | Visited by Hillfort Study Group |
| Other (None):   | Ordnance Survey observations. |
| Other (None):   | GAT prehistoric defended enclosures survey. |
Twelve ill-defined terraced platforms c. 6m in diameter probably site of wooden huts. A small trench cut 1939 revealed occupation earth and a small potsherd.
Stream 0.25km outside fort.
| None   | ✓ |
| Spring   | ✗ |
| Stream   | ✗ |
| Pool   | ✗ |
| Flush   | ✗ |
| Well   | ✗ |
| Other   | ✗ |
Twelve ill-defined terraced platforms c. 6m in diameter probably site of wooden huts.
| No Known Features   | ✗ |
| Round Stone Structures   | ✗ |
| Rectangular Stone Structures   | ✗ |
| Curvilinear Platforms   | ✓ |
| Other Roundhouse Evidence   | ✗ |
| Pits   | ✗ |
| Quarry Hollows   | ✗ |
| Other   | ✗ |
None
| No Known Excavation   | ✗ |
| Pits   | ✗ |
| Postholes   | ✗ |
| Roundhouses   | ✗ |
| Rectangular Structures   | ✗ |
| Roads/Tracks   | ✗ |
| Quarry Hollows   | ✗ |
| Other   | ✗ |
| Nothing Found   | ✓ |
None
| No Known Geophysics   | ✓ |
| Pits   | ✗ |
| Roundhouses   | ✗ |
| Rectangular Structures   | ✗ |
| Roads/Tracks   | ✗ |
| Quarry Hollows   | ✗ |
| Other   | ✗ |
| Nothing Found   | ✗ |
Small trench cut 1939 revealed occupation earth and a small potsherd.
| No Known Finds   | ✗ |
| Pottery   | ✓ |
| Metal   | ✗ |
| Metalworking   | ✗ |
| Human Bones   | ✗ |
| Animal Bones   | ✗ |
| Lithics   | ✗ |
| Environmental   | ✓ |
| Other   | ✗ |
None
| APs Not Checked   | ✓ |
| None   | ✗ |
| Roundhouses   | ✗ |
| Rectangular Structures   | ✗ |
| Pits   | ✗ |
| Postholes   | ✗ |
| Roads/Tracks   | ✗ |
| Other   | ✗ |
Ancient road leads towards the fort from the NE. The entrance on W is a passage 3.3m long and 2.1m wide.
| None:   | Walls spread - total not determined. |
| 2:   | None |
Guard Chambers:  ✗
Chevaux de Frise:  ✗
| 1. Passage-way/Corridor (West):   | None |
Single dry-stone wall, up to 4.5 m thick, except on NW were rests on crags. No ditch visible. 0.6ha.
| Area 1:   | 0.6ha. |
| Total:   | 0.6ha. |
Total Footprint Area:  Noneha.
None
| ✗   | None |
| ✓   | None |
| NE Quadrant:   | 1 |
| SE Quadrant:   | 1 |
| SW Quadrant:   | 1 |
| NW Quadrant:   | 1 |
| Total:   | 1 |
| Partial Univallate   | ✗ |
| Univallate   | ✓ |
| Partial Bivallate   | ✗ |
| Bivallate   | ✗ |
| Partial Multivallate   | ✗ |
| Multivallate   | ✗ |
| Unknown   | ✗ |
| Partial Univallate   | ✗ |
| Univallate   | ✗ |
| Partial Bivallate   | ✗ |
| Bivallate   | ✗ |
| Partial Multivallate   | ✗ |
| Multivallate   | ✗ |
Stone-walled site.
| None   | ✗ |
| Earthen Bank   | ✗ |
| Stone Wall   | ✓ |
| Rubble   | ✗ |
| Wall-walk   | ✗ |
| Evidence of Timber   | ✗ |
| Vitrification   | ✗ |
| Other Burning   | ✗ |
| Palisade   | ✗ |
| Counter Scarp Bank   | ✗ |
| Berm   | ✗ |
| Unfinished   | ✗ |
| Other   | ✗ |
None
| None   | ✓ |
| Earthen Bank   | ✗ |
| Stone Wall   | ✗ |
| Murus Duplex   | ✗ |
| Timber-framed   | ✗ |
| Timber-laced   | ✗ |
| Vitrification   | ✗ |
| Other Burning   | ✗ |
| Palisade   | ✗ |
| Counter Scarp Bank   | ✗ |
| Berm   | ✗ |
| Unfinished   | ✗ |
| No Known Excavation   | ✗ |
| Other   | ✗ |
| ✗   | None |
| ✗   | No ditch visible. |
Number of Ditches:  0
| ✗   | None |
RCAHMW 1960. Caernarvonshire Vol II: Central, A survey and inventory by the Royal Commission on Ancient and Historical Monuments in Wales and Monmouthshire, No 1057, London: HMSO.
Smith, G.H. 2006. A survey of prehistoric defended enclosures in north-west Wales 2005-2006: Gwynedd Dwyfor and Meirionnydd. Report No 634. Part I: Survey Report. Bangor: Gwynedd Archaeological Trust.
Waddington, K. 2013. The Settlements of Northwest Wales: From the Late Bronze Age to the Early Medieval Period, Cardiff: University of Wales Press.
Atlas of Hillforts:
Wikidata:
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
Document Version 1.1