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Aim: To fund specialist services including radiocarbon dating and pottery analysis relating to the archaeological excavation of an earthwor
This summer the Abbey Cwmhir Heritage Trust will be running the fourth excavation season of a settlement site within the home grange of the Cistercian abbey in the beautiful hills of north Radnorshire. Abbey Cwmhir is celebrated as the burial place of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd, the Last Prince of Wales, in 1282.
The house platform at Cwmffwrn offers a rare opportunity to investigate the origins of a long-abandoned upland settlement in Wales. The dig is being undertaken by a small team of dedicated participants and trainees, led by professional archaeologists and is largely self-funded.
The purpose of the excavation is to try to explain the origin and purpose of the settlement. Was it an upland farm on the monastic grange, or did it appear at a later date, when settlement spread onto the uplands in later centuries?
This year’s excavation will build on the work of 2023 to 2025, which has already shown that there was activity at Cwmffwrn in the late 16th century or early 17th century and has produced several sherds of 12th – 13th century pottery.
This year, we have been awarded a grant of £1800 from the Medieval Research Group to commission specialists to undertake OSL dating at the site in the hope that we can accurately date the construction of the platform itself. Many more questions about the form, function and development of the platform and the timber-framed dwelling which once stood on it, however.
In 2026, we anticipate that there will be further finds of pottery, and we are also aware that contexts containing charcoal remain to be explored, including evidence of the hearth inside the building. For this reason, we are seeking crowdfunding towards covering the costs of radiocarbon dating and pottery analysis.
Demonstrating that the house platform has medieval origins would link the settlement firmly with the monastic grange. Lessons will also be learned which can be applied to comparable deserted settlements in the uplands of Wales, and how they should be studied and interpreted.
Funding method
Keep what you raise – this project will receive all pledges made by 31st July 2026 at 12:00pm