Beacon Hill, Radnorshire - Royal Commission on the Ancient and ...

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RCAHM Wales Uplands Initiative – <strong>Beacon</strong> <strong>Hill</strong>1.0 Introduction<strong>Beacon</strong> <strong>Hill</strong> is an extensive area of upland common in eastern <strong>Radnorshire</strong>,immediately west of the Teme valley which forms the border between EnglandWales. The survey area was approximately 17 square kilometres of undulatingheathland, mainly with grass, heather and bracken cover. On Pool <strong>Hill</strong> is poorlydrained ground that includes some peat deposits. The landscape is of rounded hills,cut by deep stream valleys, especially on the east side where the streams formtributaries of the Teme. Towards the southern end of the survey area, on the lowerslopes of Pool <strong>Hill</strong>, is the source of the River Lugg. At the southern end the surveyarea adjoins an area surveyed under the Uplands Initiative in 2005 (Hankinson 2006).The highest point on <strong>Beacon</strong> <strong>Hill</strong> is 547m AOD, and the lowest slopes descend below300m, but 91% of the survey area is in the 350-500m band (see table 1).Figure 1. Location plan.The underlying geology consists of shale and siltstones belonging to the Ludlow andWenlock phases of the Silurian period, which outcrop in numerous places, especiallyin deep stream valleys. The land is used for extensive grazing of sheep, cattle andponies. There are only small areas of improved upland pasture within the survey area,but more such areas, reclaimed from the common, are found on the adjoining lowerground, outside of the survey area. The Glyndwr’s Way long-distance footpathcrosses the common, using pre-existing footpaths and bridleways.<strong>Beacon</strong> <strong>Hill</strong> is owned by Crown Estates and managed by the <strong>Radnorshire</strong> WildlifeTrust. The field survey was undertaken between February and September 2008 byHayman & Horton, with grant in aid from RCAHM Wales under the UplandsArchaeology Initiative.1
RCAHM Wales Uplands Initiative – <strong>Beacon</strong> <strong>Hill</strong>2.0 MethodologyThe project aimed to rapidly identify and record the archaeological resource throughsystematic field survey. Archaeological remains of all periods were consideredequally. RCAHM Wales undertook aerial photograph mapping of the area, which wasconsulted throughout the fieldwork phase. The regional Sites and Monuments Recordwas also consulted prior to the fieldwork and RCAHMW also provided digital copiesof the County series of Ordnance Survey maps. Tithe surveys of Beguildy andLlanbister parishes, and the 1830 Ordnance Survey map of Britain, were alsoconsulted, but a search did not discover any estate maps covering the area.The area was divided into transects 30m apart, except in areas where remains weresparse. These were divided into 50m transects. The location (NGR) and altitude ofevery site was established by a hand-held Global Positioning System receiver. Writtendescriptions, including approximate dimensions, were made in the field andphotographs were taken of all important sites and when the conditions werefavourable.The terrain changes significantly between spring and autumn, especially in the 300-400m contour band where there is dense bracken. By late summer the vegetationcover, especially bracken, inhibited the identification of some sites at the south-westend of the survey area.3.0 Results of SurveyA total of 422 sites were identified in a survey area of 17 square kilometres, giving adensity of 24.8 sites per square kilometre (table 1). An abbreviated table of sites,giving information on type, period and altitude, is provided in Appendix 1.Contour Band (m) Area (km 2 ) No. Sites Density(per km 2 )251-300 0.01 0 0301-350 0.3 20 66.6351-400 3.1 153 49.3401-450 7.1 184 25.9451-500 5.3 52 9.8501-550 1.2 13 10.8Total 17 422 24.8Table 1: Sites grouped by contour2
Page 1 and 2: The Uplands InitiativeBeaco
Page 3 and 4: AbstractThe Beacon
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