Possible pond barrows near Llanfyrnach, Pembrokeshire 2010-11 
Seven monuments displaying similar characteristics, namely scooped out circular hollows bounded by a single bank and ranging from 30m to 15m in diameter, all lie within a relatively short distance of each other on the Pembrokeshire/Carmarthenshire border. This type of site is not known elsewhere in southwest Wales and therefore geophysical and topographical surveys on five of these monuments was undertaken, followed by limited trial excavation of one, in an attempt to understand the nature of this unique group of earthworks. The five monuments surveyed and excavated all revealed features that appear consistent with known examples
of pond barrows investigated in the Wiltshire and Dorset area. It is suggested therefore that these monuments
do in fact represent a group of pond barrows. However, this is clearly at some distance from the traditional
focus of pond barrow activity in southern England, which has previously been thought to represent elements
of the ‘Wessex culture’, and date from the early to mid Bronze Age.
Evaluation and geophysical report on possible pond barrows near Llanfyrnach (in PDF format - opens in a new window - size 12Mb) |
