Pillar holds secrets of ancient Welsh kingdom
A mysterious stone pillar put up by a king of Powys over a thousand years ago is to be investigated by archaeologists.
An excavation of the Pillar of Eliseg, a ninth-century AD stone monument which stands on a mound near Valle Crucis Abbey, Llangollen, in north-east Wales, should reveal more about the pillar, and also the mound or barrow on which it stands.
The excavation could also reveal whether the site dates back to the Bronze Age.
A collaborative archaeological research project between Bangor University and the University of Chester will use modern archaeological methods to investigate the mound on which the pillar stands.
Professor Nancy Edwards of Bangor University School of History, Welsh History and Archaeology, said: “Investigating
this enigmatic monument will help us to discover more about the emergence of both Welsh and English early medieval kingdoms on the borders of Wales after the fall of Roman Britain.
“We are trying to date the barrow on which the pillar stands,
and understand the broader archaeological context of the ninth-century pillar. The site, which is potentially of international significance, could date back to the Bronze Age.”
The Pillar of Eliseg, originally a tall stone cross, is still a striking landmark. Now only part of a round shaft survives set within its original base.
Almost invisible to today’s visitor, the pillar once bore a long Latin inscription saying that the cross was raised by Concenn, ruler of the kingdom of Powys, who died in AD 854, in memory of his great-grandfather, Eliseg who had driven Anglo-Saxon invaders out of the area.
The pillar stands on a mound of unknown date and function. By the late seventeenth century the pillar was no longer standing, but the damaged inscription was recorded by the famous Welsh antiquary Edward Lhuyd.
The mound was dug into in 1773 by the local land-owner Thomas Lloyd and is reported to have contained a stone cist with a skeleton. He re-erected the pillar and the event was recorded in a second inscription on the shaft.
However, the site has never been subject to modern archaeological investigation. The project will be followed by works to conserve the mound and better explain the monument
to the public.
On Saturday 31 July (11am to 3pm) there will be a Festival of Archaeology organised by Llangollen Museum at Valle Crucis Abbey with activities for all the family. It will include guided tours of the Pillar of Eliseg and the excavations.
Other activities will include a chance to see the finds,
reconstructions of the site using computer technology by Dr Aaron Watson, re-enactors and story telling. There will also be free entry to the Abbey.
The event is part of the British Archaeology Festival.
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