The Holyhead Mountain Hut Circles, also known as 'Tŷ Mawr Hut Circles', ''Cytiau'r Gwyddelod'' or the 'Irishmen's Huts', are the remains of a group of Celtic

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostl ...

huts near

Trearddur Trearddur or Trearddur Bay ( cy, Bae Trearddur) is a village, seaside resort and community south of Holyhead on the west coast of Holy Island off the north-west coast of Anglesey in Wales. The community includes the small settlement of Penrho ...

Holy Island, Anglesey Holy Island ( cy, Ynys Gybi, 'the island of (Saint) Cybi') is an island () on the western side of the larger Isle of Anglesey, Wales, from which it is separated by the Cymyran Strait. It is called "Holy" because of the high concentration of ...

, Wales. The site is under the care of Cadw and can be visited all year round. The construction of these huts are very similar to those at

Din Lligwy Din Lligwy (or Din Llugwy) hut circle is an ancient village site near the east coast of Anglesey, close to the village of Moelfre, North Wales. Excavations in 1905–1907 produced hundreds of Roman-period pot sherds of the 3rd and 4th centuri ...

, having thick stone walls.

Hut group

The hut group is located on a level terrace that traverses the southwestern end of

Holyhead Mountain Holyhead Mountain (''Mynydd Twr'' in Welsh: from ''(pen)twr'', meaning "tower") is the highest mountain on Holy Island, Anglesey, and the highest in the county of Anglesey, north Wales. It lies about two miles west of the town of Holyhead, and s ...

. The precise age of the hut group is not clear. Much of the site is thought to date from the

but the settlement may have been in existence over an extended period of time from the

Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several p ...

to the Dark Ages, with different buildings being in use at different times. Over fifty buildings were recorded when excavations were undertaken in 1860. The site was examined again between 1978 and 1982. About twenty huts have been reconstructed; each would originally have had a conical roof, supported by poles set on top of a low wall, covered with turf or thatch. Some of the huts are homesteads; these are mostly circular and hearths, alcoves and a stone trough have been identified. Others are oval and have a dividing wall, still others are entered by long passages, and some are small, and may have been used as storerooms or workshops. One building at the northeastern end of the terrace has a walled enclosure or paddock adjoining. Artefacts found at the site include a broken stone axe, flint

arrowhead An arrowhead or point is the usually sharpened and hardened tip of an arrow, which contributes a majority of the projectile mass and is responsible for impacting and penetrating a target, as well as to fulfill some special purposes such as sign ...

s and pottery fragments from the late Neolithic or early

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...

. Inside one of the huts, a number of

Roman coins Roman currency for most of Roman history consisted of gold, silver, bronze, orichalcum and copper coinage. From its introduction to the Republic, during the third century BC, well into Imperial times, Roman currency saw many changes in form, denom ...

were concealed.

Access

This is one of the best-preserved hut groups in Wales. The settlement is to the southeast of the

South Stack Lighthouse The South Stack Lighthouse is built on the summit of a small island off the north-west coast of Holy Island, Anglesey, Wales. It was built in 1809 to warn ships of the dangerous rocks below. History The lighthouse has warned passing ships of t ...

, on the opposite side of the road from a small car park provided by the

Royal Society for the Protection of Birds The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a charitable organisation registered in England and Wales and in Scotland. It was founded in 1889. It works to promote conservation and protection of birds and the wider environment thr ...

. The Holyhead Mountain Hut Circles are under the care of Cadw; the site is open to the public, free of charge, throughout the year, except for 24, 25 and 26 December and New Year's Day. Access is by a stone stile over a wall. Holyhead Hut Group. - geograph.org.uk - 1201216.jpg, Long passage into one of the huts Cytiau Celtaidd - Celtic Iron Age Huts at Mynydd Twr, Caergybi (Holyhead), Wales 2021 50.jpg, Similar passageway into a rectangular hut Cytiau Celtaidd - Celtic Iron Age Huts at Mynydd Twr, Caergybi (Holyhead), Wales 2021 05.jpg, One of the highest huts, going up, onwards to Mynydd Twr Holyhead Mountain Hut Group (500 BC), Holy Island (507284) (32972722812).jpg, Large boulders can be found here and there Cytiau Celtaidd - Celtic Iron Age Huts at Mynydd Twr, Caergybi (Holyhead), Wales 2021 39.jpg Cytiau Celtaidd - Celtic Iron Age Huts at Mynydd Twr, Caergybi (Holyhead), Wales 2021 26.jpg, Around six huts can be seen here, in their location c. 300 meters above sea level Cytiau Celtaidd - Celtic Iron Age Huts at Mynydd Twr, Caergybi (Holyhead), Wales 2021 01.jpg, The walls were at one time much higher Cytiau Celtaidd - Celtic Iron Age Huts at Mynydd Twr, Caergybi (Holyhead), Wales 2021 23.jpg

References

{{coord, 53.3054, -4.6838, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Prehistoric sites in Anglesey Scheduled monuments in Anglesey Iron Age sites in Wales Trearddur

Hut group

Access

See also

References