Moel y Gaer, Bodfari

Moel y Gaer (Welsh for "bald hill of the fortress") is an Iron Age hillfort at the northern end of the Clwydian Range, located on a summit overlooking the valley of the River Wheeler, near the village of Bodfari, Denbighshire, Wales, five miles north-east of Denbigh. The site is a scheduled monument, classified as a prehistoric defensive hillfort.[1]

Moel y Gaer
Moel y Gaer on the horizon, from Offa's Dyke Path
Typehillfort
LocationDenbighshire, Wales
Coordinates53.2266°N 3.3570°W / 53.2266; -3.3570
OS grid referenceSJ 0950 7080
Elevation200 metres (660 ft)
Official nameMoel y Gaer
Reference no.FL073
CommunityBodfari
Location in Denbighshire
For other places with the same name, see Moel y Gaer.

The hillfort is one of a chain of six hillforts in the Clwydian Range, which are, from north to south, Moel Hiraddug, Moel y Gaer Bodfari, Penycloddiau, Moel Arthur, Moel y Gaer Llanbedr, and Moel Fenlli.[2] Moel y Gaer Bodfari is the lowest of these hillforts, being just 200 m (656 ft) above sea level. The hill on which it stands is surrounded by lower land and is strategically situated at the confluence of the River Wheeler and the Clwyd.[3] Offa's Dyke Path passes along the foot of the hill.

The fort at Moel y Gaer is one of the smallest of the chain of defensive works found along the Clwydians. It probably dates from the Iron Age, although there is no definitive evidence to establish the exact period during which it was occupied. It has a single entrance on its northern side and is defended by a steep slope on the eastern side of the hill.[4]

Excavation started in 2011 and is ongoing as of 2016. The area enclosed by the ramparts is about two hectares. Various anomalies have been targeted in the excavations, including what is possibly a group of pits and other features where the ground seems to have been dug out, as well as what seems to be a roundhouse on a levelled piece of land. Examination of the middle rampart began in 2013, and it seems that there may have been several phases in its construction.[3]

See also

References
  3. "Moel-y-Gaer, Bodfari, Denbighshire". School of Archaeology, University of Oxford. Archived from the original on 28 December 2016. Retrieved 29 July 2019.
  4. "The Vale of Clwyd: Bodfari, Denbighshire". Historic Landscape Characterisation. Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust. Retrieved 26 September 2009.
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