LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade
Satellite Imagery
LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade
Satellite Imagery
Scroll left/right to view further images.
HER: Glamorgan Gwent 00141w (None)
NMR: SS 48 NW 13 (301337)
SM: GM127
NGR: SS42148704
X: 242140 Y: 187040 (OSGB36)
Small coastal promontory fort located on the dominant irregular and narrow rocky headland commanding Mewslade Bay to W and Fall Bay to Tears Point, Gower. Precipitous sea cliffs on S and W, landward on N and E moderate. Much of the headland, which totals c. 250 long NE-SW by 140m broad, is bare rock and craggy steep slopes. Within this the fort measures c. 150m long NE-SW to outermost rampart by 80m at its base, with total site footprint of c. 1.2ha and internal habitable area of only c. 0.3ha. Main ramparts control access from landward E and N. From NE curving bank and ditch (almost gone) first encountered, c. 15m wide and now 2m high. To S curves SW to nearly meet second rampart of bank and ditch, c. 10.5m wide and to 2m high. The space between the two ramparts is c. 21m wide, but no trace of occupation visible. To W of second bank site rises to c. 50m by 35m plateau area and summit of c. 54m O.D. Here traces of robbed dry-stone wall minus ditch, seemingly around half of circuit plateau, the rest defended by precipitous slopes. Another short length bars entry from S, just beyond W end of plateau. Here the only possible entrance to the site which appears to follow possible hollow way outside SW bank of first rampart and leading to a terraced roadway much affected by quarrying and lime kiln. Shallow hollows with floors in interior probable hut sites from 3-6m across; others probable quarries. Possible phased construction with the first area around summit, but not proven. On 1st Ed. OS map (1879). Minimal investigations, undated.
Citizen Science: ✗
Reliability of Data: Confirmed
Reliability of Interpretation: Confirmed
X: -476307 Y: 6720963 (EPSG: 3857)
Longitude: -4.278742929075451 Latitude: 51.56004430393912 (EPSG:4326)
Country: Wales
Current County or Unitary Authority: Swansea
Historic County: Glamorgan
Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland: Rhossili
Coastal erosion. Quarrying and lime workings, and old limekiln on S side obscure prehistoric features. Some good sections.
| Extant | ✓ |
| Cropmark | ✗ |
| Likely Destroyed | ✗ |
Coastal grassland and bare rock. Quarrying.
| Woodland | ✗ |
| Commercial Forestry Plantation | ✗ |
| Parkland | ✗ |
| Pasture (Grazing) | ✗ |
| Arable | ✗ |
| Scrub/Bracken | ✗ |
| Bare Outcrop | ✗ |
| Heather/Moorland | ✗ |
| Heath | ✗ |
| Built-up | ✗ |
| Coastal Grassland | ✓ |
| Other | ✓ |
Small coastal promontory fort located on the dominant narrow rocky headland commanding Mewslade Bay to W and Fall Bay to Tears Point, Gower. Precipitous sea cliffs on S and W, landward on N and E moderate.
| 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: Coastal headland
| North | ✗ |
| Northeast | ✗ |
| East | ✗ |
| Southeast | ✗ |
| South | ✓ |
| Southwest | ✗ |
| West | ✗ |
| Northwest | ✗ |
| Level | ✗ |
Altitude: 54.0m
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 (1879). RCAHMW investigation 1964. GGAT Prehistoric defended enclosures in Glamorgan survey 2005.
| 1st Identified Map Depiction (1879): | OS map. |
| Other (1964): | RCAHMW investigation. |
| Other (1986): | Visited by Hillfort Study Group |
| Other (2005): | GGAT Prehistoric defended enclosures in Glamorgan survey 2005. |
Shallow hollows with floors in interior probable hut sites from 3-6m across, with others probable quarries. To SW only possible entrance to the site which appears to follow possible hollow way outside SW bank of first rampart and leading to a terraced roadway much affected by quarrying and lime kiln.
Stream 0.15km outside fort.
| None | ✓ |
| Spring | ✗ |
| Stream | ✗ |
| Pool | ✗ |
| Flush | ✗ |
| Well | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
Shallow hollows with floors in interior probable hut sites from 3-6m across, with others probable quarries. Terraced roadway much affected by quarrying and lime kiln.
| 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 | ✗ |
None
| 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 | ✗ |
Just beyond W end of plateau area only possible entrance to the site which appears to follow possible hollow way outside SW bank of first rampart and leading to a terraced roadway much affected by quarrying and lime kiln.
| 1: | None |
| 2: | None |
Guard Chambers: ✗
Chevaux de Frise: ✗
| 1. Hollow Way (South west): | None |
From NE curving bank and ditch (almost gone) first encountered, c. 15m wide and now 2m high. To S curves SW to nearly meet second rampart of bank and ditch, c. 10.5m wide and to 2m high. The space between the two ramparts is c. 21m wide, but no trace of occupation visible. To W of second bank site rises to c. 50m by 35m plateau area and summit of c. 54m O.D. Here traces robbed dry-stone wall minus ditch, seemingly around half of circuit plateau, the rest defended by precipitous slopes. Another short length bars entry from S, just beyond W end of plateau.
| Area 1: | 0.3ha. |
| Total: | 0.3ha. |
Total Footprint Area: 1.2ha.
None
| ✓ | 0.3ha internal habitable area. Possible phased construction, first area around summit, but not proven. |
| ✗ | None |
| NE Quadrant: | 3 |
| SE Quadrant: | 1 |
| SW Quadrant: | 0 |
| NW Quadrant: | 0 |
| Total: | 3 |
| Partial Univallate | ✓ |
| Univallate | ✗ |
| Partial Bivallate | ✗ |
| Bivallate | ✗ |
| Partial Multivallate | ✓ |
| Multivallate | ✗ |
| Unknown | ✗ |
| Partial Univallate | ✗ |
| Univallate | ✗ |
| Partial Bivallate | ✗ |
| Bivallate | ✗ |
| Partial Multivallate | ✗ |
| Multivallate | ✗ |
Dry-stone wall to 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 |
| ✓ | None |
Number of Ditches: 2
| ✗ | None |
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, Vol I: Pre-Norman, Part II The Iron Age and the Roman occupation, No. 698, Cardiff: HMSO.
Savory, H.N. 1949. List of hill-forts in Wales, Bull Board Celtic Stud, 13, 157.
Whittle, E. 1992. A guide to ancient and historic Wales - Glamorgan and Gwent, London: HMSO, 50-1.
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